Ren Maaka: A Dark Love Story
by year of the fox
Summary: Ren didn't know why his powers had such an odd effect on the resistant girl, nor why he couldn't get her out of his mind. Ren must decide what she means to him and how far he'll go to do something about it with every twist in the road. Many warnings apply
1. Girls, Girls, Her

******WARNING: This fic contains copious amounts of mature themes which can be quite serious, and I'm not j**ust talking about sex (I try to avoid lemons, but it's hard to avoid any details whatsoever when the story is about _Ren_). It also contains language, so read at your own risk.  
Though for those of you who can manage such material, I do hope you enjoy this.

* * *

"You're leaving already?" Hana cried desperately, crawling over the sheets as Ren rose.

As he fastened his pants, he glanced at her over his shoulder. "I'm sorry, darling, but sadly I must go." However, to Ren there was nothing sad about this. He had what he needed, and could now be done entertaining her.

She dove and caught Ren around his waist as he extracted his phone from his pocket. "Oh my love, don't worry. I understand." _This woman is literally the meaning of clingy_, he thought. He allowed her to busy herself with her hold as he opened his phone to check it. The screen displayed:

NEW MESSAGE: Toki  
ren i think im gonna  
cry i have so much  
hmwrk. im about 2  
fall apart. Can u cum  
over? ;)

Ren smiled. Toki was a college student at the local university—these girls were ideal prey. His finest feeding season was at the start of the university's school year when all the freshmen girls arrived. They were all naïve, all easily won over with the slightest bit of attention from any handsome, older guy, and were all extremely stressed out from being in a new place (as it was their first time away from home) and because of the massive workload they suddenly had to take on. As the school year progressed and they made more friends and got in the swing of things, he had fewer victims. Though he hung on to a few of the overachievers, like Toki, who seemed to be constantly under a great amount of stress to complete the extensive assigned tasks, and do them well. _I could go for a snack on my way home_, he thought.

"Ren, what is it? Who are you talking to?" Hana asked, slowly releasing her grasp and sitting up.

He snapped his phone shut. "Just checking the time, dearest," he replied. He quickly turned away and finished dressing, then turned back to her. She was watching him anxiously, clearly greatly saddened by his departure. With the advantage of proximity, she reached up and grabbed his shirt, drawing him closer to her.

"I miss you already," she disclosed, looking up at him with desperate eyes.

Ren smiled. He didn't know if he would ever care to see her again or not, but he had her right where he wanted her should he decide he did. "Don't worry, darling, I can't be away from that beautiful face for too long." This line always snagged them, because most of his prey tended to be quite average looking. These lines were well rehearsed, for he said them time and time again to all the women he seduced. She smiled as he took his chance to exit, leaving her behind him, sullen in the mess of sheets. As he left, he shot Toki back a text saying he was on his way.

Ren took in a deep breath and sighed when he escaped to the cool, night air. Though he enjoyed exercising his ability to easily string women along, it could get rather tiring. He pocketed his hands and began to stroll in the direction of the university. It was in a whole other part of the city, but he could use the walk to scope out any potential prey.

He decided to take a route through one of the worse parts of town, knowing he had nothing to fear, and that there were likely stressed out women there. As he sauntered down the street, he observed bars over many small businesses, already seemingly torn apart and covered in graffiti. There were a few people here and there, but they didn't seem to be going anywhere. And he saw they were all men, with the exception of a few obvious hookers on the corner, but Ren refused to pay for sex when he had charm, and he was left disappointed with his finds.

His attention was demanded as he heard some men call out across the street, proceeded by a wolf-whistle. Ren turned his head. "Damn honey, where you runnin off to?" one of the men called after a girl. Ren's eyes widened and he halted. _It can't be... _It was that fiery orange hair, straight down to her bust. All redhead's with hair just as bright had caught his attention ever since that night. The color ignited a passion in him, and he had been looking for her for a long time. He had wanted it again—that night—and had tried to recreate it with other women, but with no luck.

This vixen had only pinned the top of her hair back slightly as she grew out her bangs, and Ren could not see her face as she faced away. She paid no heed to the men as she quickly walked ahead, Ren and the other's admiring the sway of her hips. The jeans she wore, dark and low, showed them off well as they hugged her form from her hips to her knees, then were permitted to flare out. She wore a navy blue, hooded top, the long sleeves extending past her wrists to her fingers. In one hand she clutched the messenger bag, slung over one shoulder, close to her body. Then she took a sharp turn and vanished down an alley.

Ren had stopped near the entrance of another alleyway, from which a man silently emerged. "You, prick, give me everything you have."

The vampire turned to glance over his shoulder, annoyed. The crook seemed to be harboring some weapon in his pocket, but Ren simply told him to get lost as he turned back. The man did not take this well, and he lunged at Ren. Yet Ren simply thrust him over his shoulder. The man's body landed with a smack and Ren left him lying on the ground. _Foolish human_ _trash_, he scoffed to himself. He had more pressing matters.

The other men had forgotten about her when she turned the corner, more caught up in whatever they were scheming. Ren went unnoticed as he slipped into the shadows of the alley, and there she was. She was talking to a much older man who was bigger than her and exuded an attitude.

"Ten grams," she requested.

"Are you sure that's all you came here for?" he asked as he smirked.

"Come on, Ringo. He sent me here in the middle of the night. He's in a lot of pain. I have to get back-" She sounded familiar, too. _Perhaps if she moaned instead I would be able to identify her better_, Ren mused to himself. _Though I doubt anyone could extract those sounds from her the way I did._

"All right, all right," he replied. They exchanged green for green and she tucked the baggie away in her messenger bag. She turned back to leave, and Ren finally saw her face. His eyes widened. It was _her_, the one he fantasized about when he made love to all other women. The one he had been searching for. "Don't be shy, now. You know where to find me!" the older man called after her.

She paid him no heed as she keep her focus ahead of her and swiftly left the alley. This is where Ren appeared. She saw him, but kept her eyes down as she tried to steer around him, but he intercepted her. "So we meet again."

At this she looked up with those same dull grey eyes as before. Her face was just as he remembered, but the maturity of the last three years showed; she had grown into herself nicely. The only thing he didn't remember was the silver hoop through one nostril. "You have me confused with somebody else, excuse me I have somewhere to be," she said as she looked back down and tried to step around him.

Ren was taken aback at this. "You really don't remember me?" _How is that possible? I was her first_. He again recalled that night. All of her porcelain skin displayed as she nervously lay before him. How he had deliberately hooked his fang and shattered her hymen. How he had tasted such tantalizing, virgin blood for the first time before he took all of her. She was the most delicious, delectable meal he had ever enjoyed. And when he had bitten her, she hadn't yelped or froze up or fought back—not like he was used to. Instead, she had tilted her head back and reached her arms around him, one on the back of his head, the other leaving quickly disappearing scratch marks on his back. He remembered opening his eyes in surprise as he drank her sweet blood. Yes, there was a darkness in this girl without a doubt. She was not like the others.

"No, I have no idea who you are, now excuse me I have to get back," she pressed. He had made sure to erase her memory of the bite, but not the sex. He had wanted her to remember him as her first—but she didn't.

**Any interest in seeing this continued, let me know!**


	2. An Ounce of Chivalry

******Because of interest I'm posting again!**

As she started to pass him, he spun and called, "Wait." She paused. "I was heading in that direction anyway," he lied. "Allow me to walk with you so you don't feel like I'm stalking you, and this area is dangerous anyway. You'll be safer with me." He had just found her again after looking for years, and was not about to let her get away so easily. He was adapting quickly, his regular strategies of flattery clearly not going to work in this context.

"If you must," she answered before she continued. He strode quickly and came up beside her. Each time he intervened, he sensed her stress build up more. He was making her anxious, probably with good reason, but that was fine by him.

"It's custom for the man to walk on the side by the road to keep the woman safe, but tonight I think it's best if you walk closer to the road and further from the alleys," he remarked.

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye as he switched sides, and he could now see how she had decorated her bag with various pins and buttons. "I would have never guessed that any man knew even an ounce of chivalry in these parts," she responded. "So how is it exactly that I'm supposed to know you?"

Ren was still annoyed that she even had to ask. "If you don't remember, I'm not going to tell you."

"Sounds convincing," she replied sarcastically. "What's my name then?"

Ren pouted, knowing this didn't help his case. "It never came up."

"Ah, so it clearly wasn't something all too important," she replied.

_I took your virginity, goddammit! Why don't you remember?_ Ren shouted internally. The two emerged from the less desirable part of town onto a busy, well-lit street. Ren continued to walk wit her. "Look, I know I can't seem all too convincing since _you_ don't remember, but would you care to tell me your name now?" he requested.

"Would you care to first, sir phantom?" she asked.

"It's Ren," he replied, "so remember it this time." She didn't answer. "Care to tell me yours now?"

"No," she answered. This again flustered Ren. This was not what he had been waiting for. _I should have bitten her when I had the chance back in that other part of town_, he thought. The girl slowed as they passed a late-night grocery store. Looking in the window, she asked, "How old are you? Or how old does your ID say you are, anyway?"

"What, you want me to buy you alcohol?" he asked bewildered. It was interesting to see what this girl had developed into. She nodded. "Can't you get it yourself?" She shook her head. He narrowed his eyes. "How old are you?"

"18," she replied. His eyes shot open. _That means she was only fifteen when I slept with her. I seduced a fifteen-year-old? __But how could I have expected to meet a fifteen-year-old out so late at night by herself? This is hardly my fault,_ he concluded. "It's for my grandfather. He barely leaves the house these days due to his PTSD."

"Can't your boyfriend buy it for you?" Ren tested.

"He's not old enough," she replied, but Ren's affinity gave him a natural lie detector. _She doesn't have a boyfriend_, he surmised. _Perfect._

She was looking at him expectantly. She wanted something from him, and the feeling was now mutual. "Tell me your name and I'll do it," he bargained.

"Not only will I tell you my name, but I'll let you walk with me the rest of the way home," she answered. "Then you can carry it to keep me from getting in trouble."

He waited for her to tell him as she waited for him to confirm. "I'm waiting for a name," he said.

"Anya," she answered finally, but Ren sensed her stress level rise again when she answered.

"Your real name," he required.

She huffed and looked at him a moment. "It's Ivy." He smirked when her heart rate stayed the same. "Now go," she said just as his phone started to ring. "Unless you have other things to do."

Ren checked his phone. It was Toki. He had completely forgotten about her. Though this was not going as he had planned, he had still waited too long for her to abandon this just yet. He could play along a little longer. "No, not at all."

She held some money out between her fingers. "A bottle of scotch, if you will."

He grinned. "Don't worry, I've got it. You just wait here and look pretty." She raised her eyebrows and tucked the money away. Ren was pleased that he was working his way back to his flirtatious home field as he turned away.

Ren entered the grocery store and was immediately appalled by the strong odors. This was the first time he had ever been a grocery store, having no need for anything in it. He wanted to make this quick, and get out of here and back to the girl. He saw that there were signs over the aisles, much like other stores, and was able to navigate the store hastily.

He came back out to find Ivy waiting for him, but he sensed her stress level had risen. She had her arms crossed and was tapping one impatiently. When she saw him she immediately started walking and remarked, "Well it took you long enough."

Ren realized her anxiety was due to the time. He deduced that if he could keep her longer, her stress would build up quite nicely. As he walked, she kept urging him to go faster, and he kept bidding her to come back and walk beside him. By the time they had reached her destination, she was entirely frustrated and stressed out. They had arrived at a quiet street comprised only of houses. She started to walk up to the door of one. "Well, goodnight. Thanks for looking out for me. I hope you're not a murderer," she bid.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Ren asked as he held out the paper bag.

"Oh yeah," she replied. _She must really be worried about something for her to forget about this_. She came back out to meet Ren on the street. She had her eyes on the bag, and as she approached, Ren glanced around to see if anyone was nearby. All he saw was the empty street, framed by cement walls and dimly lit by streetlamps. He turned back to face her just as she reached him.

He held the bag between his arm and torso now, not extending it to make her come even closer to retrieve it. She reached out and took it, slowly turning away as she placed it in her bag. Once she had let go and straightened up, she faced away from him. He reached out and pulled her against him. By reflex she tried to push him off, but he promptly covered her mouth with his golden glowing hand.

Her body quickly went limp, his other arm below her bust as he held her close. With his hand still placed over her mouth, he tilted her head to one side. He pinched her body with the same arm as he briefly let go with the other to brush her hair away from her neck. He noticed the many hoops looping through various parts of her ear as he returned his hand. Not only that, but he saw the marks, _his_ marks, from the first time. A slight laugh of amusement escaped his lips when he saw this, and he pressed her a little harder against his own body. As he lowered his head, her scent intoxicated him. He did not immediately bite her, but instead took a minute, licking and tasting her neck, playing with the spot first since he knew this was as much as he would get tonight. Then he couldn't tease himself any longer.

His teeth penetrated her skin as he opened an ancient wound, sucking at the sweet fluid he had waited so long for. He was nearly in a state of ecstasy, it being just as good as he remembered. As he drank, his fist clenched, grasping her clothing with pleasure.

After a moment, he extracted his fangs as he caught his breath. He glanced down at her neck admiringly, and saw some blood leak from her wound. He licked it off and began to release her. Gliding her body to the ground, he leaned it up against the cement wall. He knew he could earn some points if he was there when she awoke.

Kneeling before her, he took her chin in his golden hand. Her eyes fluttered open and she saw him. Before she could say anything, he asked. "Ivy, are you ok?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Who are you? How do you know my name?"

"So this has become our little inside joke?" he returned.

But she looked confused. "What?" she asked. Ren was taken aback. She wasn't joking.

"What do you last remember?" he asked.

"I was going to get..." she recounted. She looked in her bag and saw that she still had it. _She doesn't remember me at all? _Ren questioned, bewildered. _But I only erased the moment I grabbed her_. "What happened?" she asked.

"We were talking when you passed out. I caught you and was able to guide your body down to the ground here," Ren lied.

"Well, thank you," she replied. She looked at him and her eyes softened a bit, her heart rate slowing. _Ha,_ Ren thought, _her memory may be messed up, but it seems I just earned some trust_.

"May I help you up?" he asked, offering her his hand. _I may be able to come off as a prince if I play this right_. With her eyes still on his, she accepted his hand and he helped her to her feet. She looked around. "Will you be all right?"

"I think so," she replied, turning her head to face him. "I'm sorry if you told me already, but may I ask your name?"

He smiled at her initiating the interaction. "It's Ren, and don't worry about it."

"Well, thank you again, Ren. Please have a safe journey to... wherever it is you're going." She began to turn away. Ren watched her as she went to the door. He was unable to bed her tonight, but he would be back.

**If it's still working for you, let me know!**


	3. Family Chatter

**Again, I'm posting due to interest! I've been writing more of this one because I like it better. Too bad it will go pretty undiscovered!**

"Grandpa, I'm home," Ivy voiced when she entered the small house. She shook her head, still a little dazed by her latest encounter. The house was dark as she walked forward through the short, narrow hall, only the blue light from the television shining from around the corner.

"Ivy, is that you?" the old man mumbled, glued to his chair and stuck in front of the TV. She saw him as she finished the length of the hall. Ahead of her was a sliding glass door. To her right, her grandpa sat just past the faded blue, floral couch partially covered in a sheet. On her left was the open archway to a very small kitchen, looping around to finish at a second archway only a couple meters from the first. An ancient desk sat between the two archways to the kitchen, its cover concealing all of the small trinkets her grandfather owned. She went and sat at the far end of the couch next to her grandfather, and set her bag down at her feet as she did so."Were you able to get it?" he croaked.

"Yeah," Ivy replied as she leaned over, opening her bag. She pulled the baggie out and dropped it on the beat-up wooden coffee table before her. Before she let go of the flimsy bag, she noticed a paper bag and pulled it out. She peeked in it and shared, "It looks like he sent a bottle of scotch, too." Ringo, the drug dealer, knew her grandfather from their time together serving in the military. Her grandfather had developed terrible arthritis, and would send his granddaughter to retrieve weed from the old bastard. Ivy never spoke of the way he harassed her to her grandfather—she didn't want him to worry about it or accumulate any more guilt. "Did you want some?" she asked.

Her grandfather finally glanced sideways, away from the TV, then promptly looked back. "Oh, I'll have some if you're having some," he answered. Ivy stood up and went to the small kitchen to retrieve a couple glasses. She poured two small amounts and returned to the living room, resuming her place. Once she set the drinks down, she went about taking apart the marijuana clumps and packing a pipe for her grandfather.

"Ok," she prefaced once she finished, holding the pipe up to her grandpa. He took it and placed it between his lips, shaking slightly. She then extended her arm to light it for him, cutting down on any activity that may aggravate his arthritis. Once he motioned he had it, she sat back, placing her feet up on the edge of the coffee table. With no other tasks, she focused her attention on the late-night crime and punishment show her grandfather had chosen.

"Are you going back home tonight?" her grandpa asked, the question accompanied by a cloud of smoke.

Ivy considered it for a second. "Probably not," she answered. Last time she had gone home this late, she had found her stepmother still awake at the table, seemingly staying up just to pass judgment on the teen. Her grandfather nodded understandingly. He was not particularly fond of his old son-in-law and his new wife.

"You know Ivy, you're 18, you don't have to live with those asses anymore," he voiced.

_But where would I go? What would I do? _she thought. "I'll make do until the end of high school," she replied. And that was the extent of their discussion. After about a half hour, Ivy pulled the blanket from the back of the couch, curling up right there, and fell asleep for the night.

* * *

_Damn that girl_, Ren thought to himself on his trot home. Even after seeing his other women, he was still pissed about Ivy not remembering him. He had earned a special spot in her memory, and yet she had eluded him of it. But as he walked, he wondered whether or not it was her fault. He was also hung up on what she had said when he awakened her. She had completely forgotten everything then, too. But why? Why would she forget so much? It certainly couldn't be anything he was doing, he had erased more memories than he could count and never had a problem before. _What the hell is up with her?_

Once he entered his house, he was again repulsed by the smell of human food. He let out a moan of dissatisfaction, then turned his attention to the kitchen. He saw the light was on. _Of course, it's that annoying little sister of mine_, he thought as he approached the room.

And there she was, caught up in cooking up another one of her little meals. "What the hell are you doing up?" he demanded. The first rays of sunshine would be peeking out right about now. This was about the time he usually arrived home, but she was always still sleeping.

"Big brother! I fell asleep studying for an exam and I didn't make Usui his lunch, so I had to get up early- Ow ow ow ow ow!" Karin cried as he interrupted her, twisting his knuckles into the sides of her head. She spun away. "Ren, you smell like sex!" she burst without thinking, holding her head.

He narrowed his eyes. "How the hell would _you_ know what sex smells like?" he demanded.

She quickly turned away and tried to busy herself. "Um, well, you see, I wouldn't- hahahaha. I just, well I just was guessing-" she tried to answer through nervous laughter. _Damn that kid Usui_, Ren thought to himself. Then she had a comeback. "Hey! How can you accuse me? _You're _the one who smells like it!"

Ren smiled. "Of course. I see no problem with satisfying as many tasty women as I can in one night."

"Ew! Big brother Ren, you're horrible! How can you just use women like that?"

"I don't know, how can you just _use_ that salmon like that?" he returned.

"Ren! Women aren't just food, they're people!" she began in protest.

Ren just turned away and started to walk towards his room. "Whatever," he interrupted. He was not in the mood to hear a lecture from his sister, who had no idea what she was even talking about, and he was already irritated enough as it was.

"Ren!" she cried after him. He turned back to glance over his shoulder. She was quiet for a moment. "Don't tell anybody, ok?" she pleaded.

"Hmpf." He turned away. "As if I'd want to talk to anybody about my little sister's sex life," he scoffed before he walked off. _God, women are exhausting._ And just like that, his mind was back on that girl. He smiled with a thought, _Now there's a woman I wouldn't mind using over, and over again._ With that thought, he was overcome by his desire to have her again. _It seems as though I will be going on a hunt tomorrow_, he mused to himself.


	4. The Park

When Ren awoke first thing that evening, he went straight to where he had last seen her, thinking his chances improved the more courteous the hour in which he arrived was. He knocked on the door and received no answer, yet he could hear voices inside. Then he heard an old man's voice shout, "Whatever you're selling, I'm not buying it!" _Her grandfather_, Ren thought.

"I'm not selling anything, I'm looking for Ivy. Is she in?" he called back, not really sure what human protocol was on a situation like this.

"You're not her goddamn ex-boyfriend, are you?" the man called back.

_Sounds like a sore spot_, Ren thought to himself. "Not at all. Just... a friend. I wanted to see if she was doing ok after seeing her yesterday."

"She went home," the man grumbled.

_Home? She doesn't live here? Dammit_, Ren thought. But with coming off as a friend, he could not now ask where 'home' was. "Ok, thanks," he called. As he turned back he added in a low voice, "for nothing, old man." Frustrated and disappointed, he sent some of his bats out to see if they could find her. For the meantime he checked his phone. _Let's see which ones are pining for me tonight_. He had a few text messages from different girls, and he chose the one that seemed most distressed, going to meet her first.

Partway through the night, one of his bats reported that he had discovered her. Ren found her exactly where he had been told he would. She sat on a park bench, a little hunched over, working on something with her bag perched at her feet. She wore a deep violet hoodie and similar jeans to the night before. Her hood was up, her red hair streaming out of it, and her sleeves again reached to cover her knuckles. "Being in the park alone at night is a little dangerous, don't you think?"

She quickly looked up. "Oh, it's you," she replied. _Well at least she remembers me this time_. "I'm not too worried about it," she replied as she looked back down. As he came around to her, he noticed she was working in a journal, the pen softly clinking against the silver snake ring winding around her thumb.

"What, you think nothing will happen to you?" he asked.

She shrugged. "It's not so much that as... I'm not really concerned as much as I should be about what happens to me."

"That doesn't sound healthy," he replied, stopping before her.

She looked up again. "It's Ren, right?"

"Yes it is," he answered, slightly delighted that she now not only remembered him, but knew his name.

"Well are you one of the people I should be worried about?" she asked.

_Yes I am_.

"No," he replied. "In fact, I was a little worried about you. I stopped by that house again earlier this evening to see if you were doing all right. An older man told me that you had gone home, what a coincidence I came across you tonight." Normally he simply had to hit on girls, but this one needed more work, more persuading. He took the opportunity to earn more time. "May I sit with you?"

"...Sure, why not," she replied, looking back down at her journal.

"So this isn't where you live, is it?" he asked as he sat down. He meant it as a flirtatious jest, then hoped it wasn't in fact her 'home' once he heard himself ask it.

"No," she answered simply, very focused on what she was doing.

"You seem to be writing about something important. Is it your ex-boyfriend?" Ren inquired, testing her as usual. "The old man made sure I wasn't him before he said anything, seemed like a sore spot."

She stopped what she was doing, and with the flick of her wrist tossed the journal towards Ren. He was quick and caught it as she said, "Here, why don't you 'read' about it for yourself."

He took the book in both hands, looking it over. On the cover she had written in script: '_all hope abandon, ye who enter here_.' He frowned and began to flip through the pages. She did not write about her troubles, but instead drew about them. Ren swept through many pictures, none of them having any meaning to him. The pictures seemed to be a collection of flowers and trees, to skulls, coffins, ravens, gore and the like. Occasionally there were caricatures, or soft drawings of herself, but she was always alone, and never looked up, never looked happy. "It's so my stepmother can't snoop through it," she informed once she knew he had seen that it was pictures, yet her concentration was on drawing on her pant leg.

"So you still live at home?" he asked.

"Until I finish high school, yeah," she answered. "So who knows how long that will be..."

"What do you mean?" he asked, trying to keep her engaged. This was a baby step to her opening up to him. Not that he would necessarily listen, but he needed to bring her guard down. She had been much less work when she was fifteen.

She sighed. "If I don't pass my math class, I can't graduate." Ren sensed her stress level rise significantly when she said this. He looked up and snapped the book shut, setting it down. He had just gotten hungry.

Ren took his now free hand and rested his arm along the back of the bench behind her. She glanced out of the corner of her eye at this, then forced herself to return to the thorny floral design appearing on her leg. She was trying not to make anything of his motions. He lifted his hand and brushed the hair away from her neck, inadvertently knocking her hood back. This made her somewhat uncomfortable and caused her stress level to rise. "Tell me more about that," he said, trying to make her think more about the distressing topic.

"There isn't really anything else to say about it," she replied.

"Well, he certainly seems to be taking more time with this one," Boogie commented. Anju was out tonight, too. She had already had her fill of envy, and was enjoying the night air from a nearby tree when she spotted her brother. She and Boogie had been observing since.

"Yes," she agreed softly, "he does seem to be spending more time than expected with her. Why do you think that is?"

"Well, she's a lot prettier than his other victims—I suppose she's a sight for sore eyes," Boogie attested, poking fun at Ren from a safe distance. "Perhaps he's trying to make her his main squeeze." But Anju had a feeling it was more than that.

Suddenly, Ivy stood up. "I have to get home," she announced, feeling rather anxious. She picked up her book and went to put it in her bag.

"Already?" he asked playfully, though internally he was extraordinarily irritated. "But we only just started talking." She was uncomfortable and ready to leave. He tried to redeem himself. "I'm sorry if I made you uneasy and overstepped my boundaries, it just seemed as though you could use a little comfort. Perhaps we could chat some more another time in a more comfortable setting? It would give you someone to talk to other than a book," he offered.

"Yeah, maybe," she answered, strapping her bag over her chest. Then she turned to leave.

Ren had resisted his typical actions of using force to at least take some blood, and for good reason. Once Ivy was far enough away, he called out, "I know you're there, Anju," rather annoyed. He had not wanted to make a violent display in front of his little sister, but still was not happy about it.

"Oh crap!" Boogie exclaimed, fearful of upsetting Ren. But Anju remained calm.

Knowing Ren couldn't hear her, she said, "I think I'm going to send one of my bats to look after that girl. I'm curious as to what big brother finds interesting about her," and discretely sent a bat to follow the girl—as did Ren. For him, this wasn't over until he got what he wanted.

**This mostly follows after the anime, but like in the manga I did allow Anju to keep talking to Boogie after she awakens.**

**So I'll keep publishing so long as there is interest, but I'll leave it be if it's going undiscovered, so please let me know if you want to read the next chapter (titled "Bitches." Yep.)  
**


	5. Bitches

**Just for you Mika, I do appreciate it.**

"IVY!" her father roared, banging on her door. This woke Ivy up, and she opened her eyes to slits. "Are you still sleeping?" he demanded.

"Dad?" she muttered wearily.

"I just got a call from the assistant principal. It's 9:45, now get your ass to school! You've already missed _so much_ of it, I can't believe you're skipping out again!" he shouted angrily, but he knew better than to actually go in her room, as she slept in the nude, which was a good defense at times like this.

"Dammit," she whispered. "Yeah, I'm on my way," she voiced. The truth was she wasn't purposefully skipping out—she was just that tired. It was a part of her nature, the way her body worked. Yet, when it was time to go to bed at night, it seemed she could never get to sleep.

She rolled over, holding a pillow to her chest, spending yet another night alone. Without meaning to, she closed her eyes again. She heard the black cat scratching at the screen atop Jezebel's terrarium. "Tarot, cut that out, leave her alone..." she mumbled.

"Ivy Marie Mason!" Her father was waiting to hear her get up.

"Right," she said, finally entirely opening her eyes. As she she stepped out of bed, the cat scrambled to get off the floor and was now perched on the windowsill. Tarot swatted at the glass, trying to get the bat that hung unnoticed just outside her window.

_Even better than I remembered_, Ren thought as he watched from his bedroom. When he had seen her clutching the pillow, he had smiled, thinking that she wanted the contact more than she was letting on. He felt his chances were improving, and was even more pleased when he saw her climb out of bed, completely unclad, before he himself drifted off into a pleasant dreamland.

* * *

_She actually looked quite pretty_, Ren thought to himself as he recalled the image from this morning. He had heard men mention before in passing that women looked most beautiful in the morning, but he had never stuck around long enough to ever experience it for himself.

And then he couldn't believe it. There she was, right in front of him. _Well speak of the she-devil, _he thought to himself. She was up ahead a bit, again with her messenger bag, but she also carried a larger paper bag in one arm. Ren sped up, twisting and dodging through the crowd. Soon he was just behind and to the side of her, but she didn't notice him. He supposed that was because she was in her own world, evidenced by the headphones she wore. He reached his hand up and knocked one out of her ear, the fierce music loud enough to be heard faintly on the main street. She turned promptly at this. "What the hell?" she uttered.

"I thought you might want to hear my voice." He smiled.

"You again," she sighed. _Why does this guy keep showing up? I have never seen him before, and he seems to have sought me out three nights in a row?_ "Are you stalking me?" she asked blatantly.

"You're a little full of yourself, princess," he countered, despite the fact that he was totally stalking her.

"Tell me again, how was it that we got to chatting the other night before I passed out?" she questioned as he walked alongside her.

"I met you at a time just like this. We started chatting and I walked with you, just like now." Lies came only too easily to him. _If I were a human, my mother would suck me dry_, he thought. "What's in the bag?" he asked.

"Groceries for my grandfather. Look," she began, clearly flustered. She stopped walking and he hooked around to face her. This was the second time he came across her late at night running errands to take care of her grandfather, which probably wasn't her responsibility. Though she was just a human, he found himself appreciating her duty to her family. Catching this, he forced himself to think of something else about her, something more objectifying. Her breasts. She had very lovely breasts. She continued, "I really have no interest in guys right now."

_Yes you do_, Ren thought, recalling her clutching the pillow. _You _want_ it_. "So are you interested in women, then?" he mused.

As he spoke, she had reached into the bag and pinched off a piece of bakery bread. She reached down and held it near the small gap between the side and top flap of her bag. "Here you go, Jezebel," she said almost inaudibly as she ignored him. Ren's fun fantasy was ruined by the small face that appeared. The rat poked her head out, sniffing the food for a second as her whiskers twitched. Taking the bit between her two front paws, she began to nibble away.

"You... take a rat with you to the grocery store..." he said. This girl certainly seemed to have a lot of quirks.

"Are you bothered by that?" Ivy looked up at him. "Rats are smart. She's very well-behaved, but I only take her out with me occasionally."

They were interrupted before he had a chance to respond. "Hey witch, you picking up some eye-of-newt for your next freak convention?" a girl yelled from across the street. Both Ren and Ivy turned towards the voice. It was a series of about four girls all dressed up for a night out, trying to show everything off as they stumbled drunk over one another. They looked to be about Ivy's age, and it looked as though she might know them. They seemed to be yelling at her. Ivy looked at them unenthusiastically.

"Oh no, you look unhappy. Does Ivy need an IV?" another taunted. Ivy turned back to face Ren, but tilted her head down as she brushed her hair behind her ear, refusing to look at him.

At this point Ren turned his attention back to her. "What does she mean?"

Before Ivy could answer, if she even would have, a third girl called out, "Hey Ivy, who's the guy? You gonna screw him too? We all know you're a fucking slut!" Right as she finished, the fourth girl cried out, "Ew! She has that icky rat again!"

Ivy looked up at Ren. "If you'll excuse me, I have to be getting home," she said as she hurriedly stepped around him, inserting her earbud again.

Ren took a moment to glare at the girls. Though he did not care much in human affairs, that was certainly unwarranted and had interrupted his time with her. This was part of the reason he hated humans, and he despised girls like that. Though they would probably be an easy lay, he sensed no stress in them as they continued to trip over one another, seeming to forget what they had just done. Without a care in the world, they were tasteless, and therefore useless.

Hurriedly, he pivoted and tried to catch up to Ivy. When he came alongside her, he reached out and grabbed the split in the cord this time, yanking the earbuds out and draping the cord around her neck. When she saw him, she rolled her eyes. "Don't you know when to give up?"

"Hey," he said, taking a larger step to get ahead of her as he grabbed her shoulders kindly and turned her towards him.

"Look, just because that girl called me a slut doesn't mean I am. I'm not holding out on you," Ivy snapped.

"I was just going to say, now might be a good time to have that chat, though I don't doubt you could add some lovely caricatures to your diary," he charmed.

She looked at him for a minute, then gave a half-smirk. "Yeah, I had a few good ones planned." She reached out and shoved the paper bag into his arms. "Here," she said. "If you're going to follow me around, you can at least make yourself useful." Luckily for Ren, there wasn't anything particularly foul in it. She crossed her arms over her body as the two again fell in pace with each other.

"So who were those girls?" he asked.

"They're all _yearbook-_worthy best friends from my high school," she answered cynically.

"What do they have against you?"

"One of them hooked up with my at-the-time boyfriend, so for some reason I'm the bad guy. Since one doesn't like me, naturally all of them don't like me." All of this had understandably risen her stress level. Ren was looking forward to the prospect of devouring her delicious feelings, but as something added tonight, he was also glad that he would be sucking away the unwarranted emotions brought on by those girls, whether he would admit that to himself or not.

"So you're current boyfriend is a nice guy, then?" he tested yet again.

She shook her head, remaining calm. "I don't have a boyfriend," she answered. _Well, it looks like we've worked our way up to honesty_, he thought.

They stopped at the same spot as before, just outside the old man's house. She turned to him to take the groceries away. As she did, he decided to do a test. _If much more of her memory is erased than I intend, let's see what effect my other vampiric powers have on her_. As his hands were freed, he lifted a hand to bump her chin up, making her look at him. She immediately saw his glowing yellow eyes and was immobilized. Tenderly, he turned her head and bent down to satisfy at least one craving.

Once he was done sucking out her recent feelings, he stood up straight again. He reached out to cover her face and erase her memory, knowing that more would be gone than he intended. But she was starting to get a little weirded out by him appearing so suddenly and frequently, and as he thought again of those girls, he didn't mind so much that he would be erasing all of their time together tonight.

**Next Chapter: **"Poison Ivy"


	6. Poison Ivy

Ivy knocked on the door in the alleyway unenthusiastically before she stepped back. She squinted in the midday sunlight, which she was rather sensitive to, especially because of her fair skin. However, she was pleasantly surprised when the door was answered by a young guy.

"Hi, is Ringo here? I was hoping to get some herbs."

The new fellow had a kind face and smiled at her. Still holding the door, he spryly jumped down the step to the street. He offered to shake her hand, his body language open. "Ringo's out for a while. He was caught violating his parole, so I've been taking care of his customer's while he's away. I'm Raiden, is there something I could help you get...?" he trailed off as he waited her to finish.

She accepted his hand and shook it with a small smile. It was a pleasant change to talk to a nice guy and welcoming person for once. "Ivy," she finished.

"Ivy," he repeated, nodding and smiling. "Love the name. So what can I get for you, Ivy?"

"Five grams should do for today," she answered.

"Five grams," he confirmed. He looked right at her when he spoke, and used big open arm gestures. He held up a finger, still grinning, "Just, give me one minute? Just one." She nodded. "All right," he replied happily, then confirmed, "I'll be right back." At that he was gone and back in much less than a minute, extending the baggie to her.

"How much do I owe you?" she asked as she tucked it away.

He propped the heavy door open with his body, leaning on it while his hand rested on the frame. "Well," he began, then smiled and looked down a little shyly at the ground before he looked back up at her. "I would prefer if in turn you let me take you to dinner..." he trailed off, wanting to actually hear her response to this so as not to have the amount weigh into it.

She looked at him a moment, then nodded slightly. "Yeah, sure," she replied, unopposed to the idea.

His smile widened and he seemed to let out a small sigh of relief. He looked away and nodded as he did this, saying, "Good." He looked back at her, then eyed her bag. "You got a pen in there?" he asked.

Ivy twisted to look, unwrapping the top flap. "I think I should," she replied just as she found one.

Once she drew it out, he held out his hand. "Just write your number on here, old school style." He had a delightful playfulness about him.

"Ok."

She reached out. As she wrote, he commented, "You'll probably want my number anyway. My phone's just inside, I'll text you so you have my number once I get back in there and find it." She finished and looked back up at him before she slipped the pen away. Then she began to turn. "I'll let you know. It was nice meeting you Ivy!" he called as she moved farther away. She waved and finally spun to face ahead.

* * *

Ren was getting annoyed with his odd feelings and overwhelming desires for the girl, so he decided it was best to try and lay off her, and even forget about her if he could. He busied himself with other girls, and whenever he caught himself comparing the girl he was with to her, he reprimanded himself. But it was only a couple weeks before he simply came across her again.

She was sitting in a swing at the playground he passed as a part of his semi-regular route. She was again hunched over, her hair falling forward as she looked at something in her lap. With one hand, she pinched the item to her leg, the other hand with a hold on the chain. Her toe was pointed, touching the ground as she used it to slowly rock back and forth.

He approached her. "What the hell are you doing?" he asked, standing before her.

He startled her and she looked up. "Oh Ren, it's just you," she said. As she glanced back down he saw the thickness of her carefully shaped eyeliner, thin to an outer thick flick to mimic the lash shape. "You haven't popped up in a while."

Once he was there, he could smell it. His nose was attuned to finding blood, which also allowed him to know that she was now at the end of her cycle. This had helped him before, being able to avoid women who may not give into him so easily with their insecurity, but he hated how goddamn arousing it was, as it was to all male vampires. It was not only blood, but the blood of life, of fertility. It was only natural for it to appeal to him.

_Dammit!_ he thought, knowing this again had him snagged, desiring her even more now than when he had tried to give her up. He tried to focus on something else. "What are you reading?" he asked painfully.

"It's a comic book," she sighed. "_Batman_. My ex-boyfriend left it. I don't read a whole lot of them, but I do enjoy the issues with Poison Ivy."

"Poison Ivy?" he echoed, trying really hard to focus on just her words and not all of her temptations.

"Yeah. She was originally introduced as a seductress, but turns into one of Batman's love interests," she replied, still viewing the book. "She's a super-villain, but instead of trying to rule or destroy the world, she actually tries to save it. Not really humans or anything, mind you, but the natural world. She fights using pheromones and the like, and her preferred method of attack is a toxic kiss. She has this fiery red hair and in this issue is only wearing a few vines to barely cover her breasts."

_Poison Ivy is a temptress to Batman? Are you fucking kidding me? THAT'S what's supposed to distract me right now?_ he fretted internally, seeing all to well the symbolism in it. He exuded more self-control than ever before as he unintentionally pictured her in the same vines. His eyes dropped to her breasts, which were somewhat obstructed by her arm. She had grabbed the pendent from around her neck and was gently sliding it back and forth on its chain, gliding it against her lips. Ren looked up to the sky and tried to change the topic. "What's that you have on your necklace?" he asked.

"It's a pentacle," she replied.

"Like, for the Earth religion?" he asked, which immediately made him relate her even more to this Poison Ivy seductress, and brought him right back to where he had tried to escape.

But she gave him the escape route. "Yeah, it was my mother's. She was a Wiccan."

Ren lowered his head to look at her. He had never heard her talk about her mother before, and now that she had... "Was?" he echoed.

As evenly as she had said everything else, she replied, "Yeah. She died when my grandfather, her father, tried to commit suicide by stepping in front of a bus. She pushed him out of the way." Ivy was quiet for a moment before she silently closed the comic book and slid it back into her messenger bag at her feet. Ren sat down in the swing next to her. He wasn't sure what to say. He still had his whole family, and they were fine, even his misfit sister.

His phone buzzed in his pocket and he discretely brought it out to check.

NEW MESSAGE: Em  
Ren my parents  
want to meet you!

_Great, _he thought sarcastically_. Now is not the time, Em_. He snapped his phone shut and placed it back in his pocket.

Ivy had been rummaged though her bag and now sat up, placing a small joint in her mouth as she cupped her hand to light it. Ren watched as she held her breath, then slowly exhaled.

"You know," he began, "I have something better for that."

"What?" she asked as she again wrapped her lips around the rolled paper. "You mean something better to smoke out of? I'm set, but thanks."

Ren was annoyed. "No, for that stress of yours," he clarified.

"Sorry," Ivy responded as she tried to hold her breath, then the rest came out with the smoke. "I don't do hard drugs."

Ren was again annoyed as he spun his swing sideways to face her. He grabbed the base of either chain on her swing and twirled her toward him. "That's not what I meant either." He noticed her eyes looked slightly green, the grey iris now contrasted against pink.

"Again, sorry," she replied rather non-apologetically as she again assumed what he meant. "I have a date. It would be a little rude to mess around with you when I already made plans with someone else."

"You have a_ date?_" Ren fumed. _She can't have a date! Not after all the time I've invested, and her telling me she wasn't interested period!_ He considered hypnotizing her again, then just mauling her right there. No- no she was a game for him to win. He always knew that he could do better, and he was going to prove it to himself. Tonight he would have to let her slide. He stood up to leave, infuriated and not knowing how much longer he could control himself near the temptress.


	7. Exes

Karin hummed to herself as she cooked for Usui. Anju accompanied her big sister in the kitchen, staring off at nothing as she attended her sister's side. She had been watching Ivy for a while now and still couldn't figure it out. She wanted to talk to somebody about it, but the only person she could talk to, aside from her dolls, was her sister. Anju decided to go for it.

"I think big brother has taken a liking to a girl," she mentioned quietly.

"I think he takes a liking to a lot of girls," Karin responded in her ditzy manner.

"This one is different," Anju said. "He has spent a great deal of time with her, but hasn't slept with her yet and she is gorgeous."

"A real knockout!" Boogie interjected.

Anju ignored the doll. "And he shows a great deal of self-restraint when he's with her, and she doesn't seem to have any interest in him."

"And he doesn't like that! You know how pissed Ren gets when he doesn't get his way!" Boogie said, again voicing his opinion.

Anju squeezed him, silencing the doll. "I don't know why, but it seems the only likely explanation is that he actually likes her."

"...How do you know all this?" Karin asked nervously, knowing the way her sister went about things could be a bit creepy at times.

"After I discovered them in the park one night, I sent one of my bats to watch her," Anju answered.

"Anju... are you watching her all the time?" Karin asked, turning to look at her sister as the pan sizzled.

"I am conducting a thorough investigation," she answered, turning to Karin. "Why?"

"No reason," Karin giggled uncomfortably. "Just be careful, ok?"

Anju looked up at her sister warmly, and before they could discuss the matter further, a smug voice rang through the kitchen.

"So, my dear grandson has a crush, you say?" The two girls turned to see Elda leaning her back against the far doorway to the kitchen, one leg bent, arms crossed, and head tilted down with her eyes closed. "Though I seriously doubt _Ren_ has a crush on a _mortal_, I should still check it out for myself." She pushed herself off the doorway and stretched before turning away to leave. "Ta ta for now, girls."

"Shit!" Boogie exclaimed, starting to squirm in Anju's arms. "Once Ren finds out that you told her he's going to kill us! We should fess up and warn him now- No! We should just go into hiding-"

"No," Anju intervened. "I have been watching her, and I think she might actually be good for big brother Ren. He's been able to have intimacy, and have girls be willing to do anything for him, but he's never allowed himself to actually have a deep bond with another. This girl, the way he's been pursuing her and the discipline he's shown... I'm not going to stop."

"Awww," Boogie whined as he went limp in Anju's arms. "He knows we know. We're dead meat for sure."

"Ren sure is lucky to have a little sister like you, Anju," Karin replied cheerfully as she turned back to cooking. "I know I am!" Anju turned to look up at her sister, and with a soft happy hum, she smiled.

* * *

_Ren was sure upset when he found out about tonight_, Ivy thought as she walked back from her date. Raiden had been nice but... not what she expected. During the date, he had mentioned several times how beautiful she was, but he seemed unable to get past that. _Ren at least keeps coming back after seeing some of my quirks,_ she thought. _Wait, why am I comparing the two again?_ These thoughts had started up during dinner with Raiden. It did not take her too long to figure out that he had just been through a breakup... since he kept talking about it. Raiden was sweet, but all else had been a complete turn off. It had been during that time that Ivy had started to tune out, and somehow Ren came to mind.

"Ivy!" She flinched. _No, not that voice again_. "Baby," her ex huffed, reaching her after his mad dash.

"You lost the privilege to call me that-" she began as he caught her hand between his.

"I've missed you," he said. They had been doing this back and forth for a couple years now, but she had gotten rather all done with it after he smacked her last time. She tried to pull away.

"I'm finished with this, Jirou," she said disdainfully. He pulled her closer.

"Baby, baby I've missed you so much. I've tried being with other girls, but they're just not the same. And I've gotten so much better, I even quit smoking-"

Her eyes widened in disbelief. "Jirou, you have a cigarette behind your ear _right now_."

"Oh yeah," he replied. "Well I'm going to quit, I swear." He hadn't changed a bit.

"Jirou, I said let go of me. I'm over this," she tried to pull away again, but found herself actually pulled back. She had an arm around her as she was pulled against another body.

"I would prefer it if you let go of my girlfriend before I get nasty."

Jirou angrily dropped her hand. "Really Ivy? You're with _this_ guy?"

She looked up. _Ren_. "You're also delusional if you think I'm you're girlfriend."

He looked down at her, annoyed. "I'm not delusional, I was just trying to help you out."

"Oh-"

"Did you hear that, bro?" Jirou asked aggressively. "She's not interested in you. Now we're in the middle of something-"

"No," Ivy interjected as she looked back at her ex. She raised her hands to cling to Ren's clothing. "Given the choice, I chose him."

Ren smirked. Keeping his arm around her, he turned to walk away. Jirou called obscenities after them, but Ivy continued to cling to Ren for a bit. Her feelings cause his chest to throb. After about a block she pushed him away and she stopped, looking down.

He turned to face her. "So you're just going to shove me away without so much as a thank you?" he spat. Not only that, but he still hadn't forgotten about her date.

"Thank you," she muttered. "Sorry, it's just uncomfortable to walk that way." _What?_ Ren screamed internally. _Women love that!_

He huffed, "Well what's wrong? Aren't you excited? You have a big date coming up, don't you?"

"So you're still upset about that," she murmured, then she voiced louder, "I was just on my way back from it." She shook her head slowly. "It wasn't- it didn't really do it for me."

Ren hated the feeling of relief that washed over him with this. _What is it with this girl and these damn emotions?_ he demanded again. "So that's why you're upset?"

"Not really-"

"So it's because of your ex-"

"Sort of," she said. "It's more... I'm just not happy with the way my life is going." She finally looked up, staring off down the dark street.

Ren was taken aback. _That sounds a lot more deep-rooted than simple stress_, he thought. He took another moment, and realized she had yet to share something nice about her life. In fact, he had yet to see her happy. Ren had bitten Ivy on several occasions now, but she hadn't started to shine like his other victims did. Even if he sucked her stress away, she was still unhappy. _What the hell?_ he thought. _Why does that have such little effect on her when everything else is magnified_?

Just then they were interrupted. "Oh Reeenn! Introduce your new girlfriend to Grandma!" Ivy turned toward the shouts, and Ren's head shot up quickly.

"Shit!" he cried as soon as he spotted her. Ivy simply watched him flee as quickly as he could, unfazed.

Elda halted when she reached Ivy, pouting after Ren. "Damn that boy, he's so ungrateful!" She had found Ivy by having her bats follow Anju's. "Aw, well," Elda concluded before she turned to Ivy. "So you're Ren's little love interest."

"I'm sorry," Ivy said, a little taken off guard. "Are you his girlfriend? Ex-girlfriend?"

Elda threw her head back and laughed. "No silly, I'm his grandma!"

Ivy naturally assumed she was being sarcastic, as there was no way this woman was a grandmother. _So, judging by how he ran away and how unsurprised she seems, I'm going to say ex-girlfriend_, Ivy surmised. "Did you say love interest?" Ivy asked. "He seems like he has a lot of love interests. There's something not very sincere about him."

"How perceptive of you, I'm impressed," Elda said. "Though he does like to juggle his women, he's never taken a liking to one the way he has you." _He must still talk to his ex_, Ivy guessed. "So tell me, darling, what's your name?" Elda saw Anju was telling the truth; the girl was very pretty. But she also noted how she sensed no love from this girl.

_Why bother lying to her? _"Ivy."

The woman's cheery demeanor lessened when she heard this, her posture dropping. "...Ivy..." she echoed.

It was then that she recalled something her beloved Alfred, the botanist, had said once about ivy. Elda remembered it so clearly, how she reclined in his arms near an ivy-covered fountain. _"Ivy is a creeping plant. It can work its way up to rise above all other plants, including trees. It can climb just about everything, able to penetrate small areas like a tiny crack in a rock. It can be an evergreen or deciduous as there are many types. For example, in Japan ivy can be red."_

_Let's see if the girl can live up to her name, and break open that crack in Ren's heart. It seems as though she's already risen above the other girls in Ren's eyes._ Elda looked her over for a moment. "Your not very driven or afraid of much, are you?"

Ivy shrugged. "Not really."

This girl was a little different, but there was nothing remarkable about her as far as humans go. "Well this has been a nice little talk, but I'm afraid you'll have to forget about me now."

"Huh?" Ivy responded.

Elda held out a glowing hand, covering it over Ivy's face. Then she turned and walked away down the road. Ivy came out of the trance a moment later, and Elda heard her mutter, "What the- how did I get here?"

Elda turned over her shoulder at this to glance at the girl. _She really doesn't remember? I only erased a moment of her memory... Wait, could it be?_ Her eyes widened. _Oh my, I see the attraction now_, she mused to herself as she turned back, continuing on her way. _Regardless of how Ren feels, this can all work itself out. It's his choice if he wants to be with a human, or not._


	8. Big Sister

**So I've been writing for this story and have about 40,000 words at the moment and it's coming along, so I will be able to continue with punishing during the summer in this deep, dark corner of fanfiction *sigh***

"Tarot, cut that out," Ivy said. Her mother's cat accompanied her as she weeded her mother's old garden. Tarot liked to come with her and pester the grasshoppers, playing with them until they were left twitching on the ground and lost their fun, at which point he would abandon them.

Ivy stood up, knocking the dirt off her pants with what little of her hands were exposed. Then she lifted her basket from the ground, carrying the fresh strawberries, peas and basil back inside to be washed. As she washed them, her little sister, Sora, came home from school. Sora was her half sister, eight years old, and brought about by a fling her father had when Ivy's dad and her mother were separated for a bit. After Ivy's mom died a couple years ago, her father had opted to marry Sora's mother, Inari.

Sora trotted in with her bag, and saw her big sister washing strawberries. She stepped up on the stool for her near the sink, holding the straps on her backpack. "Ooh, strawberries. Can I have some?"

Ivy glanced nervously out of the corner of her eye as she shook the container filled with the berries under the faucet. Sora was a sweet little girl, and Ivy had nothing against her.

"Sure," Ivy said.

"Actually," chirped Sora, "sometimes momma cuts them up and puts them in milk and sprinkles sugar on them. Could you make that for me, Sissa?"

"Um," Ivy began, considering it. Inari wasn't home yet, and their dad worked silently in his home office. It had been a while since those rules were put in place. Either they wouldn't know, or they would see that everything was ok when they came across her. "Sure," Ivy answered. "Just sit at the table and start your homework. I'll make it for you." Sora happily obliged. Ivy pulled out a knife and cutting board, starting to cut the strawberries into bite-sized pieces.

Then Inari came home. She set her things down before she sauntered into the kitchen. Her pace slowed and her face dropped as she saw what was before her. "Ivy," she snapped, taking the knife away and aggressively slamming it on the counter, "You know you're not supposed to use knives." Her expression and tone became a little more pleasant as she turned to Sora. "Sweetie, you know you're only supposed to be with your sister if another adult is around. Now come on," she started to usher her out. "Come help me with... the laundry," she made up.

Ivy put her palms on the edge of the counter, leaning on it, and tried to hold back tears, seeing she was still trusted as little as she was before. She sniffled and redirected her attention, seeing a strawberry that looked particularly red and ripe. She lifted it by its stem, then turned to lean her hip on the counter as she bit into it.

Ren's bat was perched right in front of the window above her sink. He watched as the red juices trickled over her lips and fingers. _Too bad she's human, she would make a lovely vampire_, he dreamed.

* * *

Ivy sat outside on the main street. She had a small table outside of a late-night café. Her tea steamed next to her while she added some doodles to the margins of her favorite Sylvia Plath book. She heard the second metal chair to her table scrape the ground and looked up. "Haven't seen you since you stormed away about my date," she greeted.

Ren paused, then realized, _My grandmother must have erased her memory_. "Yeah? How was it, then?" he asked, trying to see how much she remembered.

"Oh," she sighed, "It was a pretty uneventful night." _So not a lot,_ he speculated. Ivy closed her book and stuck it in her bag, then stood up.

"You know I'll be walking with you," Ren asserted. He was hopeful that tonight would finally be the night.

"Yeah," she sighed, "I know." She picked up her tea and turned as Ren stood to follow. Tonight they walked silently together down the busy street. He would find opportunities to touch her, such as gently guiding her closer when distracted passersby came too close, or when they would have to weave their way through a crowd. He was subtle enough that she didn't protest, but knew this would gain him ground in his battle for victory.

She chucked her empty cup in a convenient trashcan. After some time, they approached the well-lit, public restrooms of the city. "I need to stop in here," she excused herself.

Ren stopped. Once she went through the opening and around the corner, he pocketed his hands and looked up to the stars. But after a moment, he heard excitedly, "Ren! Honey, what are you doing here?" Before he could even look towards the voice, he felt hands clutching his jacket and a smaller body leaning on him. He drew out his hands to help with his balance as he looked down. It was one of his girlfriends, though without a text beforehand, he was having trouble remembering her name.

"Darling, I-" He couldn't make her forget that she had seen him, there were too many people around. Ren thought fast, "-saw you go in there from a distance, so I've been waiting here for you to come out-" He hoped he was right in assuming that's where she had been.

"I'm so glad I ran into you! My friends are just up ahead, I'd love for you to meet them," she chimed.

Ren knew he needed to get out of here fast. It would be easier if Ivy didn't see him at all when she came out, and if Ivy said anything when he was with this girl, well he didn't want to have to deal with protective, vengeful friends. "I would love to meet them. Which way are they? This way?" he said, ushering her forward to just get moving in any direction.

The girl led him down the sidewalk with her arm around him as he walked at a fast pace. "They're this way, wow, you really are anxious to meet them!" This girl was thick. Many of his prey were very insecure, and would have at least worried by now that he had indeed been waiting for another girl. He just had to get away before- he looked over his shoulder.

Ivy stood at the doorway watching him. _Dammit!_ he roared. _Dammit, dammit, dammit!_

"I knew it," she said to herself as she watched him walk away, arm in arm with that other girl and panicking.

Ren continued to fret about what to do. _If I can tie things up with this girl quickly, I can get back to her and erase her memory of this. I'll apologize and cut this short, saying I was out on an errand or something, then I can go find Ivy and erase her memory. Yeah, that should work. _He looked back at her. She found a faint smile and held her hand up. She tilted her head as she waved her fingers goodbye. _DAMMIT! _Ren clenched his teeth and faced back ahead of him.

Ivy, feeling rather smug, spun around and began to walk in the other direction. He had made her feel somewhat uncomfortable again tonight. She didn't know what to do about him. She supposed he was harmless, so long as she kept her guard up. Though she probably wanted to steer clear now, his promiscuous nature now confirmed, as she didn't want to get caught up in any conflicts with another girl. Again. Ivy wandered into the park as she thought.

Once she realized where she was, she gave up on the thoughts. They weren't particularly intriguing, nothing really was though. She was again aware of how grim she felt. She found a bench and curled up on it, crossing her legs and pulling out Romeo and Juliet, then turned to her favorite part: the end. She began to read.

_Poison, I see, hath been his timeless end:  
O churl! drunk all, and left no friendly drop  
To help me after? I will kiss thy lips;  
Haply some poison yet doth hang on them,  
To make die with a restorative._ _Thy lips are warm. _

Ivy continued to read on, filled with emotion and longing.

She finally reached her favorite line. _O happy dagger! _Ivy held a hand up to rest on her heart, finishing the line in a whisper,

"_This is thy sheath..."_

"Big sister." Ivy looked up, spooked, only to find a little girl in Lolita clothing, holding a doll with a butcher's knife, looking up at her. Anju had witnessed Ivy watch Ren leave with another girl, and had come to investigate why she had sensed no jealousy from Ivy. "Big sister," she said softly again.

Ivy was taken off guard, but instinctively bent slightly to meet the little girl's eye level, pulling the edges of her sleeve to now extend past her knuckles. "Are you lost, sweetheart? Do you need help?" Anju closed her eyes and shook her head. "Oh..." replied Ivy. She looked over the girl again. "You look very nice, and I like your doll," she complemented wholeheartedly. _Why is this girl out here by herself? Where are her parent's? God, I can't stand people._ "You can't be out here on your own, it's not safe, can I take you somewhere?"

"I'm with you, big sister. That means I'm safe, doesn't it?" Ivy almost lost her breath. Her parents had eluded her of this purposeful role, and here was this little girl, and she was giving her a second chance. This girl and situation were rather creepy, but that only made Ivy more comfortable.

Ivy uncrossed her legs and dropped her feet to dangle, leaning forward. "Of course. Of course you're safe with me," her voice shook and eyes softened.

"You seem sad. Why did you call your heart a sheath?" Anju asked.

"So you saw that, huh?" Ivy muttered turning away. She felt a hand rest on her knee, and turned back to see Anju looking at her intently.

"Have many others hurt you?"

Ivy reflected on all the people in her life, how they were all torn or torn away from her, and tears came to her eyes. Ivy felt an intense sorrow well up in her, and the tenderness of this girl from nowhere caused her to open up. Ivy began to cry, covering her face in her hands. Anju continued to touch her, then she said calmly, "You can see him for who he is, can't you? And you can see all of his potential to hurt you. That's why you weren't jealous of that other girl that went with big brother Ren."

Ivy's lifted her head, still in the midst of tears. "_Ren _is your brother?"

"Mm," the girl hummed. "Big sister, I like you. I think my big brother is afraid of experiencing the pain that you have. He's never allowed himself to be close with anyone. But there's something about you, big sister. I can tell he feels differently about you."

"What?" she sobbed, not understanding what was going on.

Then they heard a girl's voice cry out, "_Anju!_" Anju looked up to see Karin running towards her, extremely worried. Anju was accompanying Karin on an errand when her bats told her what had happened with Ren and the girls, and she had promptly left without a word. Karin had quickly become worried when she noticed her disappearance. She was still frantic when she finally found her.

Ivy and Anju weren't the only two who heard Karin's cry. On his way back to erase Ivy's memory, Ren had discovered she had already left and kept walking in search of her when he heard his sister's cry. Ren snapped his head in that direction and saw Karin running toward Anju. Then he saw Ivy in tears, knowing already of her depression, and saw what was about to happen. He thought Ivy's unhappiness might cause Karin's blood to increase to the point where it could seriously hurt her.

Ren shouted at the top of his lungs, "Karin stay back! Don't go near her!"

Karin halted, twisting around. "Big brother?"

Ren hurried to where Ivy was and nudged Anju out of the way. "Anju, go with Karin, now," he commanded as he knelt, taking Ivy's face in his hands. Ren was also rather smug, however, assuming that Anju had simply been drawn to Ivy due to jealousy. He wiped her tears away with his thumbs. Then he tenderly said to Ivy, "I had no idea you liked me this much."

"I never sensed a trace of envy, this isn't because of you," Anju interjected quietly.

Ren was taken aback. "Then why are you here? What the hell did you do to her, Anju?" he demanded.

"Nothing, big brother. We were only talking," Anju proclaimed. He gritted his teeth, unsatisfied with this answer. Ivy seemed overwhelmed and unable to follow what was happening as he looked into her face. "What are you going to do, big brother?"

"Just go!" he growled. "This doesn't concern you in the least. How dare you interfere with my affairs?"

But Anju didn't budge.

"Nothing was revealed, so there's nothing to wipe clean, unless it's the pain you're trying to take away," Anju voiced.

Ren gritted his teeth. "You are seriously starting to piss me off, Anju."

Upon hearing this, Karin called to Anju. Finally, at her sister's beckon, she left, and Ren took Ivy's memory. Ivy lost consciousness at this, as he had intended, though only slightly. Anything more and he worried what would happen. She was already leaning forward, and Ren guided her fall to lean against him. _What happened? _he asked again. _You seemed fine_... He went to gather her things, now noticing Romeo and Juliet open and face down on the bench.

"Oh, so were you in need of some romance?" he asked the motionless girl, slightly delighted. He picked up the book to see where she had left off, and his smugness faded when he did. He put her things together, then picked them up along with her, taking everything with him into the air. He left her at her grandfather's doorstep, watching discreetly until she came to and went inside, very confused.


	9. Hedera Helix

Ivy's lab partner was surprised when she actually showed up one morning after a few absences. It was a lab period and they were given time to work on a project, which he had grown accustomed to working on alone. Though she was consumed in just settling in, her lab partner became extremely nervous, as he always was around her.

"Hedera Helix, you're back," he finally spoke up. Toshiro could only ever get up the nerve to talk to Ivy by using binomial nomenclature, making a play on her name.

Ivy turned to him. "Yeah, look I'm sorry, Hiro. Again." Toshiro almost blushed despite having heard her nickname for him before. She was the only one who had given him a nickname. "I hope I haven't created too much of a burden on you."

"It's fine," he said quickly, looking at her, not wanting her to feel guilty for a moment. Toshiro did not need Ivy to do the work, and was more than capable of doing it on his own. But Toshiro had quite the crush on Ivy, seeing as she was the only girl who spoke to him kindly and sincerely. Sometimes other girls would talk to him, but only in the interest of using him to do their homework. "Is everything ok?" he asked nervously, a little worried since she had missed a couple days.

Ivy shrugged. "Yeah, it's fine I guess."

After she answered him, they were both quiet. Toshiro became even more nervous, sensing a tension and awkwardness building with every silent second. He didn't know that Ivy took no notice and was simply becoming lost in her own thoughts: _I need to figure out what the fuck is up with these time lapses. Maybe I have been smoking too much. Or do I even care that I'm losing time?_

Trying to break the tension, he said, "You know, Hedera Helix would make a really cool superhero name." As soon as he heard himself say it, he regretted it. _Way to go on sounding like a total dweeb_, he reprimanded himself.

"I suppose so," Ivy replied. "Though I do like the simple name of Poison Ivy, despite her being a villain."

Toshiro's thoughts flipped like a switch. _She likes Batman? You love Batman! Go for it, Toshiro, you know all about it. Make a move already! _But he couldn't find the courage before he began to shut himself down. _No, she'd never go for a guy like me-_

"What's wrong? I thought you were really into this stuff," Ivy interrupted, looking at him. Toshiro still wanted to respond, but couldn't. He was just too petrified. Ivy sensed it to a degree. "You don't have to worry, I'm not going to bite you."

"Right," he managed to say.

"So how have you been? Have you been able to have some free time or have I left too much work on your shoulders?"

"Oh yeah," he said quickly. "I've been working on my science fair project." He began to get out materials for their lab as he spoke. "I think it's really good, but I'm nervous because Makoto wins every year."

"I'm sure you'll do fine," Ivy replied warmly. "So, are you ready to explain what we're doing today? Don't forget to dumb it down for me." Ivy pulled on her ever-present long sleeves and leaned forward to look at the project papers.

"Yeah," Toshiro said quickly, turning to the work. "Today we're using these beakers to-" Toshiro reached out to grab the beakers as he spoke, but he had, as always, become clumsy around her. He knocked over several beakers, which he frantically tried to catch, but they still went crashing to the floor.

The class turned to look, then quietly went back to work. Except for a big guy at a nearby station, who couldn't help but yell out, "Yeah way to go, nerd-boy!"

"Hey why don't you shut the fuck up," Ivy shot back, her tone no longer kind.

"Oh yeah, you got somethin' to say to me, Red?" he turned his body to face her.

"Yeah, I just did. But I'll say it again just to be clear: shut the fuck up."

"You bitch," he said angrily, but still refrained from advancing, apparently more of a barker than a biter.

"That's fine, you can pick on me all you want, just leave him alone, jackass." The situation could have escalated from there if the guy's partner hadn't needed his immediate help when something went wrong. He turned back, upset, but letting it go.

Ivy continued to glare at him until he turned, then looked back at Hiro, just as friendly as she had been before. "Sorry about that. What were you saying?"

Toshiro looked at her, truly touched that she had stood up for him. He thought for a moment that it might mean something, giving him the courage to say, "Hey Ivy, would you like to get-" His mind kept pressuring him to say it. _Would you like to get together sometime? Do it!_ But he couldn't, and finished with, "-the broom or more beakers?" _Dammit!_

* * *

As Ivy was walking home from school, some children were playing ball in the street. The ball strayed and slammed into a wall above Ivy, bouncing off; but something else fell from the spot. As one of the kids came to reclaim the ball, Ivy stopped and glanced back. On the ground lay a twitching bat.

Ivy returned and crouched, taking the bat in her hands. "You poor thing," she said. She cradled the small creature as she arose and continued on her way, planning to nurse it back to health.

Back at the Maaka's, Elda stretched, noticing the bond had broken with one of her bats. "Aw, well," she concluded. "Whatever happens, happens."

* * *

Karin came home from school to find her brother alone in the living room, fretting. He was turned away from her, his arm along the back of the couch and crossed foot jiggling.

"What is it, Ren?" she asked, coming in to sit across from him on the edge of the chair, holding the straps of her backpack around her shoulders. "Is it that girl?"

"You're going to have to be way more specific," Ren shot back, not wanting to show that he saw one any different from the others. Then he looked at her and stopped jiggling his foot and corrected himself irritably. "No, _I_ don't have girl problems."

"Well it's just that-" Karin started.

"Get lost, Karin. Go up to your room, do your homework, make your stupid lunches, whatever. Just get off my back and stop annoying me," he spat.

"Sorry!" Karin squealed before she left.

Ren returned to trying to remain in denial about how anxious he was to see that girl.

**If you've been enjoying this, feel free to leave a review. I always appreciate them.**


	10. Errand

Ivy sat under the setting sun by herself, crying. This wasn't unusual. She was in a secluded area in the park, and hastily tried to get herself back together. Trying not to give into it, she wiped her tears away and took a deep breath before coming out of the trees.

The sky overhead was violet with the sun recently leaving the sky. As Ivy walked through the park she saw him up ahead of her. Ren leaned against a lamppost watching her approach, his arms crossed.

She stopped with heavy feet, throwing her head back. "You have to be fucking kidding me," she muttered. She lowered her head again and sighed. "How do you find me?" she asked Ren, beginning to walk toward him again.

"I assure you it's pure coincidence," he replied cleverly, pushing himself off the post. "So where will I be accompanying you tonight?"

As she approached he noticed that her eyes looked slightly green again, but he couldn't smell any marijuana on her. Only leaving him to realize, _She's just been crying_.

"I'm going to the grocery store to pick up a few things for my grandfather again," she answered.

"You do that quite a bit," he remarked, trying to make small talk.

"Well believe it or not he eats three times a day," she returned.

He glanced over at her sauntering alongside him. As usual, she wore jeans and a long-sleeve shirt. Tonight, however, the dark green fabric was reconstructed into an open braid along the side of her arms, extending to the back of her hands and exposing her pale skin.

"You know, even though you're only sharing a little bit, I think this is the first time I've seen your arm, or your wrist even," he commented. _Well, first time in a long time_, he added.

"Good for you," Ivy replied flatly.

They were silent for a moment as Ren tried to think of a better topic to make small talk about, when Ivy said, "Hey Ren?"

He perked up at this. "What is it, sweetness?"

She gave him an annoyed side-glance at his endearment before she asked, "Do you know what bats eat?"

Ren was taken aback by this, but was glad she asked him about something he could answer. "For the most part, but it depends on the type of bat. Why do you ask?" he pried.

"I found this bat last night. Just a little one that seems pretty common around here. A child had hit her with a ball and injured her, so I've taken Luna into my care and was wondering if you knew."

_What...? But none of my bats have been injured... _He turned her story over in his mind and prompted, "Luna?"

"Yes, that's what I've named her," he heard as he continued to think. _That means someone else is keeping an eye on her... It has to be Anju. God, she can be such a nosy brat. _"And the ones that hang outside my window I've named Bruce and Wayne."

Ren wondered for just a second whether his bat was Bruce or Wayne, but then realized, _So she's noticed, though I seriously doubt she'll link them back to me_. "Well, if it's a common bat for this area, it more than likely eats insects," he answered finally.

"Insects," he heard her whisper back to herself, trying to remember it.

Ren smiled to himself. _Damn, she's cute_. For any of his other women he would have said this aloud, even if he didn't mean it, causing them to giggle and cling to him. _But she's not like the others_. This made him rethink his strategy, making him realize that he might have to alter that as well.

"Would you prefer it if we didn't chit-chat as we walked?" he asked slyly.

"Most likely," she replied.

Ren thought more about how she was different and how he may need to change his game as he walked with her. _Normally, I give them my undivided attention_, he thought. _So I'll give her minimal attention. Tonight I'll do a test_.

As they walked Ren began to look around, focusing on their surroundings, and he noticed Ivy peek at him in the midst of their silence. "Ok, it's kind of weird when you're there and don't talk," she confessed, giving in.

He turned back to her and grinned. "Is it now?"

She huffed, looking over his quip. "And here we are," she announced dryly.

Ren followed her as they walked through the automatic doors into the city grocery store. He paused with her and looked around disdainfully while she picked out a basket. "I hate places like this. The odor is wretched," Ren spat.

"Then why don't you stop stalking me and go do something else?" Ivy simply suggested as she continued on.

Ren kept in pace with her. Annoyed, he asked, "I'm not stalking you. Will you stop fucking saying that?"

"Will you stop fucking doing it?" Ivy returned calmly.

Ren huffed and pouted as she stopped to examine the grapefruits, selecting a few to pick up and twirl in one hand, giving them more attention than she gave Ren. She accepted a few, bagging them, then grabbed an accompanying fruit. "And a blood orange for me," she murmured.

"If you're so sure I'm stalking you, then why don't you do anything about it?" Ren asked, starting to get quite irritated with the way he was treated.

"Honestly, I have more important things to worry about," Ivy replied, going about her task.

"Oh yeah? Like what?" Ren asked, unconvinced.

"Well, I just know other people, including exes, who are much creepier than you." Ivy gave Ren a good glance and shrugged before focusing again on the products. "If something were to happen, well, perhaps it's not the worst thing that you're watching."

Ren wasn't entirely accepting of this answer, and continued to turn it over in his mind as he followed her silently. He couldn't quite figure out if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

Her phone began to ring from the depths of her bag. She hooked the basket on her arm and dug into her bag to promptly answer her phone. "Hello?...oh hi..."

Ivy continued to meander through the store, Ren right at her side. During her conversation he received a message on his phone: a request from a girlfriend to have dinner. He replied that he had planned on it before pocketing his phone. _Though not the kind she's thinking of..._

"...Yeah...uh-huh yeah I can pick some up, was that all?...ok, love you..." And just like that her call was over. "Linguini and 2%," she repeated to herself.

_Still adorable_, Ren admired. He noticed her going to put her phone back in her bag as she continued to glace around the store. Ren snatched it before she could drop it, earning her attention with this.

"Ren, seriously?"

Ren was grinning as he held it above her head, beginning to dial. Ivy reached for her phone and he, being much taller than Ivy, raised it up out of her grasp. He felt his phone begin to ring in his pocket and extracted it, making sure her number did indeed show up.

"Well look at that," he mused, turning his screen to show her. She stood there, annoyed, with sunken shoulders and a fixed glare. Ren lowered her phone to give back, which she snatched almost as quickly as he had. "Now you have my number," he informed as she slid the phone back in her bag. "Should you decide at another time that having me watch out for you isn't the worst thing in the world."

She looked back up to glare at him, clearly not amused, and then stated, "You're exhausting."

Ren smiled wide. "Oh, darling," he jeered, pocketing his hands and leaning forward a bit, looking right into Ivy's eyes, "you don't know the half of it."

Ivy raised her eyebrows at this implication. "Wow," she declared before stepping around him.

Ren turned to follow, unable to refrain from adding, "And that's precisely what you'll say after."


	11. Escort

"Come on Tarot, get it. Get the bug. Just one more."

Ivy was in the grass out by her mother's garden. She pinched her diary to her knees—adding to the scorpion with its stinger pierced through a bleeding heart—in between pointing to crickets. Ivy didn't want to hurt the bugs herself, so she was relying on her specialist to terrorize them half to death. Of course, now that she needed him to, Tarot simply sat looking at her, flicking his tail. Ivy moved her hand closer to the bug to aggravate it, and as she intended, it jumped. Tarot was suddenly very attuned to the bug, his ears and whiskers erect. He took a step forward, coming to his paws, his eyes on that spot. With another step he made the cricket jump again, and the chase was on. Ivy watched guiltily as she waited for Tarot to injure it.

When Tarot finally lost interest, Ivy collected the bug. "I guess that will have to do for now," she remarked as she dropped the bug into a glass jar. She pinched the side and titled the jar to see what they had caught. It was mostly dark, and they just looked like a small collection of black.

Ivy stood and started to walk toward the house, which was quiet without so much as a light on. "Come on, Tarot. Let's go," she called back. Tarot, on his own terms of course, arose and trotted to catch up with her; his tail high in the air.

The two reached her room and she clicked on a dim light. "Hey Luna," Ivy said gently, advancing toward the small nest she had made for the tiny creature. "Tarot caught you some—Tarot leave her alone!—Tarot caught you some crickets."

Ivy reached into the jar and extended a bug to the bat. Luna reached out, then began to chomp down on it. With this Ivy smiled, relieved, and scattered the other few insects around the bat.

As Luna chowed down, Ivy moved onto her next order of business. As she strapped her messenger bag across her chest, she looked out the window. _Damn, it's dark out_.

It was a long walk to Ringo's from her dad's house, and though she had taken it many times, it always made her uneasy. Ivy picked up her phone and began to tap it on the top of her dresser, looking out the window during her internal debate. She bit her lip, then made her decision. "Better him than anyone else," she reasoned.

Ivy's attention was on her phone as she headed out the door, finding the unprogrammed number in her recent calls. She decided it would be simpler to call. She was slightly surprised when he didn't answer, but assumed it was just a part of his game of chase (when in actuality, Ren was busy with another girl). Ivy left a message anyway.

"Ren, it's Ivy. I'm on my way to buy some herbs if you're still anxious to accompany me. Call me back."

* * *

Ren pulled back from his goodbye kiss, finally ridding himself of his current girl. He watched her walk away, and she kept looking back to make sure he was still watching. But when she was finally out of sight, Ren pulled out his phone to check it. His eyes widened with surprise and he smiled in delight.

MISSED CALL: Ivy  
NEW VOICEMAIL

"Well what do we have here?" he gloated as he went about investigating this wonder. _I knew it wouldn't take too long_, he thought admiringly to himself as he held the phone up to his ear.

After he listened to the message he checked the time on the missed call. It wasn't too long ago, but still, she could be anywhere. He looked up to one of his bats, hoping he hadn't missed this opportunity.

"Where is she?"

The bat returned a brief trill and Ren looked back at the street.

"I see."

* * *

Ivy was strolling along down the street, clutching her messenger bag as usual, when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She spun frantically and smacked Ren, who had suddenly appeared, across the face.

"Ow!" he yelled irritably as he held a hand up to to his face.

Ivy quickly drew her hand back to cover her mouth, now that she saw who she had hit. "Sorry!"

Ren was pissed. He turned back to look at her, but saw her off the defensive for the first time. "Do you want me to- Um- Ren I'm so sorry-" Ivy kept reaching her hand out and drawing it back, unsure of what to do.

"If you weren't such a fox I'd be a hell of a lot more upset," he snapped, unable to control himself as well as usual. He lowered his hand to pull up her chin and make her look directly at him. "But never do it again."

He stepped forward, heading down the sloped sidewalk. _That was it? _Ivy thought. _That's weird_. "You mean you don't want me to kiss it to make it feel better?"

Ren halted, then spun around. "Well, since you're offering..." he said with an improved tone.

Ivy stepped forward, then passed him. "I'm not offering, just asking," she replied, back to her unapologetic voice. "What are you doing, sneaking up on me anyway?"

"You called," Ren declared as he fell in step with her, still unhappy without his kiss.

She sighed. "Yeah, I guess I did. But I could have managed on my own," she added quickly, turning to him a bit as she again clutched the strap on her bag. "I just figured it wouldn't hurt to have you." She again faced ahead. "Besides, if I give you a few minutes now it means you'll bug me less later."

"Oh sweetness," he nearly laughed, "it means no such thing."

They didn't say much as they walked together. "So I'm thinking about getting a snakebite," Ivy eventually piped up.

"A _what?_"

"A snakebite. It's a piercing. I would get my bottom lip pierced twice, once on each side," she said. "I would get hoops. I like the hoops better because of the way they run with the natural lines on the lips."

_That came out of nowhere._ Ren was amused when he concluded, "Are _you_ trying to make small talk now?"

Ivy shrugged. "I've told you it's weird when you're here and don't talk."

"Well let's see," Ren said, stopping her. He again bumped up her chin, leaving his hand there as she looked up at him shyly. "Where would they be again?"

Ivy slowly raised a hand, and moving as little as she could, pointed to the two spots. Ren smiled as he envisioned it. "So you want to look like you have little fangs?"

"I... guess..." Ivy replied, not really sure how to respond to that. Ren kept his eyes on her enticing lips, reaching his thumb up to brush against them. At this she knocked his hand away and continued on.

Ren let her walk ahead of him, just so he could watch her strut. When Ivy noticed, she prompted, "Get up here next to me."

He obliged and they walked for a minute. "You'd be cute whether you chose to get the piercing or not," he answered finally.

"Did it take you that long to figure it out?"

"Not really, I know you just like hearing my voice," he said smugly. Ivy huffed at this, but refrained from saying anything to avoid another 'you're exhausting' conversation.

They had worked their way into the worse part of town, and up ahead they could see three men congregating on the corner, acting like they owned it. Ivy discreetly reached out and took Ren's hand, which he looked down at. "This doesn't mean anything, it's simply to make us look like something we're not," she stated.

"Whatever you say, beautiful," Ren responded, beginning to slightly swing their hands together. Ivy huffed at this as well, but went along with it anyway. However, Ren was ready to have much more fun with this new twist.

As they approached the men, Ren dropped Ivy's hand and wrapped his arm around her. He rested his hand on her hip and pulled her against him. He took this golden opportunity to lean down and kiss her cheek before nuzzling his face into her hair, placing kisses wherever he pleased.

"Ren, what are you doing?" Ivy asked quietly. They were getting nearer to the sketchy looking men.

Ren drew back from his most recent kiss to speak softly in her ear, "Don't worry, this doesn't mean anything. I'm just doing it to make us look like something we're not."

"Haha, funny. Now cut it out Ren," she said anxiously. But that was the last thing she could say without risking the others hearing her. Her pretend-boyfriend simply went in for another kiss on her neck, and she became that much more appealing with the added anxiety from his actions.

When they were close, Ren hooked his fingers under the hem of her shirt, slowly allowing them to creep up. He pulled her a little closer before Ivy took hold of his jacket. She jerked him behind her just as they passed the men, causing him to let go while she said, "Baby, you have to pay attention to where you're going."

The men watched and one commented to the others, "Damn, if I had a girl like that, no way I'd be taking her out around here this late."

Another replied, "Naw, I'd be spendin' all kinds'a time at home with her for sure, if you know what I mean." The other men laughed loudly and agreed with him, complimenting him on his comment.

Ivy tightened her grip on Ren's jacket. He reached up and gently pried her hand off. He didn't move it away, however, and held it at the same spot against his chest. "Don't worry, Ivy," he assured, still smug with himself for taking advantage of the situation. "Nothing will happen to you while you're with me."

With these words she surprised him by returning his grip. He again came alongside her, and noticed her eyes were glazed. "What is it?" he asked, confused.

"Just the bullshit I have to deal with simply because I'm a girl," she said. "And I hate that the best solution to deal with it is having to rely on a man for protection from the other ones. I want to be able to just go out at night and be as carefree as you are."

Ren didn't know what to say to this. He had never thought about this before and didn't know what to make of it. He just squeezed her hand momentarily before lowering it back between them, feeling it was the best thing he could do.

"Just let go whenever you want," he said quietly, looking back ahead of him.

He continued to pick at it in his mind, then felt a second hand on his arm. He glanced down to see Ivy pulling herself closer to him. She rested her cheek by his shoulder, and he felt her stress level decrease a bit. _Even if I calm her nerves, this is a win-win situation for me_, he realized. "Well then what makes you trust me?" he asked, unable to keep himself from bothering her again.

He heard her sigh, though it was shaky this time, before she answered, "If you were going to do something to me, you would have done it already. You've had the opportunity." She paused as they reached the alleyway, ending the conversation. "Wait here, I'll be right back."

Ivy left Ren to watch in the shadows. She knocked twice on the heavy door before she stepped back. Some music and chatter could be heard between the door opening and closing.

"Who the hell is it?" Ringo demanded as he stepped out. Then he saw Ivy. "Ohhh. My, my. If it isn't the little skank. I heard you went on a date with Raiden while I was away. So what is it? Am I not good enough for you? Too old?" he spat, advancing toward her.

"Look Ringo, I'm just here to buy and go home. That's all."

"How about this," Ringo said, grabbing Ivy's arm, "I'll take you on a _date_ right now, and you'll like it-"

Normally, Ren would let this situation go on a bit longer, allowing the girl's stress to build up, unconcerned by what happened to the human. But this time he couldn't stand to see the man's distasteful hands on her. Ren didn't let it go on a second longer: he didn't want any hands on her but his own.

His eyes were immediately illuminated, and out of nowhere a swarm of bats came and surrounded Ringo. He tried to swat them away as Ren advanced. Ringo still clutched Ivy's arm through the cursing and swatting in the black cloud. He released her only when Ren, veiled by the bats, came up and punched him in the stomach. Once Ivy was freed, he quickly and calmly found her hand, holding it so she knew it was him, and swiftly led her away from the scene.


	12. Lucky

**So I was thrilled to find I have another reader out there loving this! I haven't updated in a while because I actually have a life now, but I decided to take a little time to post at least one chapter to show I appreciate the feedback (and don't worry, I'm not done writing this story and already have 21 chapters written).**

* * *

**Sexuality warning.  
**

Ivy had to almost run at times to keep up with Ren's fast pace as he led her through the back alleys. Once they were far enough away, he tossed her before him and let her catch her breath along with her balance.

"Thank you," she breathed.

Ivy grimaced. She put a hand up to the back of her neck, hanging her arm from it as she lowered her head and closed her eyes. Ren watched her from the corner of his eye as she let out a deep breath. She was quiet for a moment, then grimaced again. Ren felt a pulse through his body.

"What is it?" he pressed.

Ivy shook her head. "It's just my back," she said. "All the tension from my stress builds up there, and it can really hurt from time to time. And now I have no pot to combat it." _And these tits certainly don't help any. Damn, I could really use that weed right now._

Ren's eyes traveled down from her neck to her back. Despite their recent close encounter, he saw his opportunity. With his supernatural stealth, he moved in behind her. "Here?" he asked as he laid his hands upon her.

Her head shot up and her mouth opened, letting out a few breaths. Breaths much like the ones he was familiar with in a much more raunchy context. He smiled, finally having found her weakness. Up until now, Ivy had been very opposed to Ren, constantly keeping her guard up, but once his hands nudged that tender spot she was immobilized. They worked their way over her back without reservation. Not only did he take this opportunity to move closer, but she leaned back into him. With the hand she had still resting on her neck, she gathered her hair and pulled it over her shoulder, simply trying to move her hair away from her back to allow and encourage him to continue. And there it was. Her exposed neck. Right there. He was starved after all that commotion, and may not get a better opportunity than this.

His eyes started to glow red as he began to lean down. Attempting to keep her entranced and get a hold of her, he simultaneously ran his hands toward her front, attempting to cross them beneath her breasts and hold her to him. But as soon as they left her back and seemed to have other plans, her eyes shot open and she snapped out of the enchantment.

"What are you doing?" she cried as she pushed him off and spun away from him. Her outburst caused his eyes to dull before she could view them. She was able, however, to see them narrow a bit in frustration. Every time he thought he was close to sealing the deal, she inevitably pulled away. He had been through a lot tonight, and he had just had her in his grasp, and again she managed to slip away.

The outburst had caused her to move almost a foot away from the wall of the alley. He only looked at her for a second: that's how long he was able to remain composed. After that, he reached out and pushed her against the wall, leaning a hand on the wall on either side of her.

Ivy froze. She was unsure of what to do as she kept her eyes on him. He had just saved her, and had been rather generous and sincere with her tonight. Even so, it didn't stop her from being terrified. Most men she knew would expect something after all that he had done. But what terrified her more was that tonight she didn't feel all that opposed to it. She was afraid of intimacy and the inevitable pain that had always accompanied it; but at the same time, she hadn't had intimacy in a while, but still suffered overbearing pain.

"You know," Ren proclaimed, "I have something that will relieve you stress much better than a mere back rub."

Ivy assumed he was talking about sex. "You're awfully confident," she countered.

He smirked, then entreated, "Let me show you why." Ivy said nothing, still thinking. The pleasure she had simply felt from a moment ago was tempting her into something more. She had recently read that sex could drastically help with depression—and she was getting desperate.

As she thought this over, Ren's eyes scanned her being. She was beautiful, worlds prettier than his typical prey. And feisty.

With his confidence now brimming he decided to make a deal. "How about this," he began, "let me kiss you. That should leave you without a doubt in your decision." He looked into her eyes. She didn't protest, and that was as good as a yes to him.

He took her chin firmly in his hand and started to lean in. Just as his eyes started to close, she impulsively reached out and pushed him back. "No!" she cried. He was almost enraged as she again found it in her to deny him.

But then he realized that she hadn't pushed him off, just back. She clung to his jacket yet again, looking back and forth between his eyes, clearly thinking something over. _What is the meaning of this?_ Ren demanded, though he managed to contain his frustration. He felt there was still hope so long as he had control over himself.

Ivy was thinking. She restated his comment from a moment ago in her mind, _"I have something better for that."_ Without knowing what he was, Ivy didn't understand exactly what he meant. She thought he meant something else (though for Ren, sex and supper were really one in the same) and in her emotional disarray, was weakened enough to give into it.

"...I'll do it," she affirmed. "Just don't kiss me on the lips."

Ren took an extra moment just to make sure he had really heard her correctly, and smiled wide once he realized he had. He acted quickly before she could change her mind. Ren pushed himself off the wall, grabbing her hand and forcefully leading her along behind him.

Luckily for him, his current hotel was not far away at all. He pulled her in a hurried stroll, she unable to keep up with him by simply walking. He held her wrist behind his back as he wove through the crowd, and he smiled when he noticed she was in turn clutching his jacket.

He was fortunate enough that someone was stepping out of the hotel elevator just as he approached, cutting down even more on time. He swung her in against the wall, finally letting go as he flung her. He turned, pressing the button to close the elevator before he pressed the one for his floor, more than ready to get her alone.

Before the door had even completely closed, he had returned to her. He knew better than to let the mood die. He needed to keep her mind on one thing so it didn't change.

He started behind her ear, kissing it, but the scent and placement was just too tempting. He didn't want to ruin it yet. He sunk lower, kissing her exposed chest before lowering himself to get at her stomach. He placed a hand on each hip and ran it up her sides, pushing her shirt up slightly to expose her skin. Her head was titled back, pressed against the wall, and she wove her hands into his hair, giving in completely.

Ren continued to slowly raise her top, kissing and exploring any new skin he found, when he noticed something that hadn't been there before. Some ink, swirling just above her hip. As he lifted her shirt, he followed it toward her ribs. Soon he had revealed her naval piercing, with a silver thin-legged spider dangling from it; he didn't remember that from before either. He took the end between his front teeth and tugged gently before letting it slip away, his eyes glancing up at her before he returned to follow the ink. As he revealed more of her porcelain skin, he found a tattoo of muted green ivy creeping across her side. "This is new," Ren muttered as he admiringly ran a hand over it.

She finally tilted her head down. "How would you know?"

The elevator dinged, saving Ren. The young vampire stood and drew the key from his pocket, grabbing her arm and turning to pull her along behind him. He had waited much too long for this and wanted to make it happen before she had a change of heart.

When they reached the room, Ren turned part of his attention to opening the door, but Ivy made up for it. Working her hands under the front of his jacket as she wrapped her arms around him, she pressed herself to his back. Ren smiled.

_Finally, I have her_.

He turned the knob and pushed open the door with his body, being sure to drag her in with him. As they entered they readjusted to face one another, Ren leaning back and double locking the door behind his back. Pushing her further into the room, she reached across her body, grabbing the strap to her bag and lifted it over her head, dropping the bag to the floor and leaving it behind.

Ren helped guide her, as neither had bothered to turn on a light and he easily saw in the dark. As they approached the bed, Ren smiled maliciously as she too took part in removing his clothing. Once the majority of his clothes were shed, he reached down, going straight to undo her jeans. She simultaneously discarded her shirt, feeling safe in the darkness. At that moment she became all the more tantalizing, that skin again revealed to him. He pushed her back onto the bed and finished ripping her pants off. Ren lowered himself, hooking his arms under her knees and pulling her toward him.

He settled his hands on her hips, toying with the lace panties as he then bent to kiss wherever he pushed the hemline back. He traveled down, moving inward as he exposed his teeth. He lightly trailed his fangs down her inner thigh, ending with a kiss.

Placing his hands on either side of her, Ren arose to hover over his prize, but she reached her knee up and hit his side, knocking him over. She rolled with him and claimed the top. Ren was a little surprised. The women he was typically with were shy and insecure. They would submit and wait for him, wanting to know that it was ok, that they were wanted. Some would even ask him to to tell them they were beautiful, or go so far as to ask him to say 'I love you.' But male comfort and companionship were not what Ivy was after, and she certainly wasn't shy about it.

Ivy straddled him and pushed his shoulder's back in an attempt to pin him. She lowered herself and gently took his ear between her teeth, running her hands up and weaving them into his hair. She slowly pulled them down, running them to his chest and then out along his arms. She stopped at his biceps, now clutching him and starting to dig her fingernails into his skin. He felt her breath on his ear and neck, and enjoyed how she would arch her back into him.

Ren had decided to give her a moment on top, but knew he could not let her remain there. With this decision he had let his hands come to rest on her hips; but as her skin came along his, he raised them to hold her closer to his chest. One hand came to her shoulder near his face. He again grazed his teeth on her skin, moving along her shoulder and pulling her bra strap away with his hand. With his other, he reached up and rested it on her clasp. Just as he was about to pinch, she sat up.

"Ok, what-?" she uttered. Something was bothering her. She could feel the sharpness of his teeth. With one hand she reached out and grasped his chin, pulling his lip down. She squinted, using what little city light was available through the translucent curtains to investigate.

Ren quickly knocked her hand away. "What are you doing?" he snapped. But she had already seen them.

"You have fangs," she stated, though no fear reflected in her voice. She sat upright. "Did you actually give yourself fangs? What, are you some sort of wannabe vampire? Were the bats yours too?" Her tone was somewhat mocking and he didn't appreciate it.

"I told you you'd be safe with me," Ren reminded her unhappily. He was extremely irritated with her accusation, as well as the timing of it. "Aren't we in the middle of something?" he remarked, never confirming nor denying what he was.

"Do you want to know why so many women find vampires attractive?" she inquired, finally in a flirtatious tone.

"Humor me," replied Ren.

"Most women don't even realize this, but they find vampires sexy because of where they bite, right here-" As she cleared her hair away, she grasped Ren's hand and guided his fingers to graze right over her jugular, thinking that he couldn't see it in the dark. With his heightened senses he could feel her blood pulse against his fingers with his light touch. "It is an extremely erogenous zone for women and many men overlook it."

_How convenient for me_, Ren thought to himself. "Right here you say?" he asked provocatively as he sat upright to bring his mouth to it. He kissed it, then licked it. He was so tempted to right then as his self-control was again tested, but now wasn't the time. She was on top, thinking clearly, and he wasn't sure how she would react to a bite. It was time to change that.

Before he rolled her over, he unclasped her bra and pulled it away. He was more than ready to finally take her again. Her blood wasn't the only thing he desired. And in that moment, he realized that it had not been the taste of her blood that he had been missing most. It was that primary desire that he planned to now satisfy as he went to pull her final piece of clothing away. He lowered himself, taking care to watch how much weight he laid on her. He rested against her, his arms and hands holding her to him as he continued to play along and tempt his senses.

He soon heard her moans and irregular breaths, and he smiled. She had been brought into the moment. He finally had her, and Ren was now more sure than he had been that he would be able to have everything just as he wanted. He paid attention to her nails as they left quickly disappearing scratch marks, and waited until he felt them curl in, pulling him closer. Now was the time. He again penetrated her, sinking his teeth into her soft neck, enjoying her all the more.

Ivy reflexively tilted her head back. "You're weren't pretending," she whispered, a little shocked at this, but that was her only reaction. He felt the hands that had been clawing at his back, not become defensive and try to push him away, but instead soften. She rested them and pulled him closer as she turned her head away, granting him better access. Ren's eyes shot open and turned to his peripheral. _Another odd reaction_, he thought. _What a strange girl_. Ren pushed his thoughts away. He needed to finish, so he concentrated on the pleasure from her blood and her body until he released.

When the intensity finally lessened, he extracted his teeth, licking any spilled blood so as not to waste any. Once it was gone, he propped himself up, completely satisfied. She looked quietly and calmly into his eyes. _She's not bothered,_ he thought. _She's so sensitive to my erasing her memories. Maybe if I let her have them, she will be easier to have again_...

She seemed to be thinking about something. "What is it?" he snapped.

"You're not as much of a creep as I thought you were. You were just... hungry. That's why you were so persistent," she answered. He cocked his head to the side and pouted. _He has quite the adorable pout_, Ivy thought to herself. She looked away and then actually pushed him off, sitting up. She found her shirt and put it on, then reached for the dim hotel lamp to help her find the rest of her clothes.

"You're leaving already?" Ren asked as she dressed. She didn't want to cuddle? Or talk about their feelings? She wasn't even going to apologize and give a reason for leaving so soon?

"Yeah," she answered as she put her shoes on. She saw his confusion. "This didn't mean anything either. Did you think that once you had me I would fall in love with you or something? Come on, you weren't _that_ good." Ren's pout turned into a deep frown as feelings boiled up inside him. How dare she insult him? "Oh I see," she said, standing up. "You get a lot of girls, don't you? So you think you're amazing because of it, but you're always the one leaving. You never stick around for any feedback." Ren did not take this well, but with nothing to retaliate with, just climbed out of bed and began to dress himself too.

He turned back to her just as she strapped her bag over her shoulder and tucked her bra in it. "You know," he began, thinking of a way to get back at her, "I had actually considered not erasing your memory, but-"

"Oh you can do that? That makes sense I suppose," she interrupted. "No, you should totally do it. I won't miss the memory of tonight."

Ren didn't know what to say. The more she spoke, the more it pissed him off. He reached out and tapped a yellow glowing finger to her forehead, hoping this would have a more normal effect on her. In her dazed state, he guided her out to the street, then stepped away.

Ivy shook her head, then looked around. From the top of a lamppost, Ren watched her walk away. As he did, his sister Karin's words came back to haunt him, _"Big brother Ren, you're horrible! How can you just use women like that?"_ But at the moment, and for the first time ever, Ren felt like it was _he_ who had been used. _That damn girl. __I'll show her_, he thought angrily to himself. He jumped and flipped away, now on a mission to find another woman to practice on.


	13. Ink

"Hello doll," Ami greeted as she opened her door to Ivy. "It's nice to see you again, I haven't seen you for a bit. So what were you thinking?"

Ivy followed the 20-something further into her house. She watching the way her red pencil skirt twisted with every step, the intricate peacock on her leg jostling with her. Her perfectly sculpted jet black hair bounced a little with every step. Ami glanced back over her shoulder with her painted black eyes, contrasted against her skin just as much as her bright red lipstick was.

"Yeah, sorry, I just didn't have an idea of what I wanted," Ivy said. Ami was a talented tattoo artist, but she did all her work at home for free. The catch was she was still a student, so she did her work simply for practice until she could tattoo legally.

"Well I assume you do now. Go on then," Ami prompted.

Ivy began her description, "I would like solid black bats, sort of like the Batman bat, becoming larger in size towards the top on my left shoulder. I would like them to be as small as a three centimeters and no more than nine. I want it to look like they are flying together upward, so they become larger as they go up."

Ami had pulled out a pad of paper and began to sketch. "And you want them to follow the curve of your shoulder? Maybe coming onto your arm a little bit?"

"Sure." Ivy took the opportunity to again study the details of Ami's sleeves. One was of traditional Japanese beauty—fans, cherry blossoms, paper cranes, the like. The other was a tribute to a more modern day Japan, complete with a colorful city street and skyline.

Ami came up with the perfect design and they started. Ivy took a swig of whiskey from her flask, then laid down on her stomach and crossed her arms to rest her head on. She wore a black leotard, worn due to the location of the tattoo, as it was backless, and a pair of well-loved jeans.

Soon Ami was working and chatting away. "So how're things with Jirou?"

"We're not together anymore," Ivy answered. "But I'm glad we're not."

"Yeah, he was certainly not the pick of the litter," Ami remarked as she worked. Ivy could feel Ami's gloved hands brush the ink away and she took another swig of whiskey. "So why bats, darlin'?"

"I don't know," Ivy responded. "I've just had a fondness for bats lately. Maybe because I rescued one."

"You sure do have an odd taste in animals, girl."

"I suppose," Ivy responded. Ivy didn't feel like Luna was the reason, nor were Bruce or Wayne, but Ivy really didn't know why she had bats on her mind so much as of late. Probably just because of her odd taste in animals.

* * *

It was about 3AM and Ren was out for a walk. This was a typical lag time for him seeing as his girlfriends were more often than not all asleep. But Ren would go out instead of staying with his last one, seeing as he was naturally awake and had never liked to spend anymore time than he needed to with his girls.

He came closer to the park and the sky opened up. He pocketed his hands as he strolled down the sidewalk, looking up at the crescent moon.

Ren heard a soft, "Hey," before he felt a hand on his arm. He quickly spun around, on the defense, only to find Ivy. If it weren't for his impeccable vision he would have barely been able to see her. Tonight she wore black fishnets peeking through the holes in her jeans, and another shirt with very long sleeves. This one was also black, and clung to the side of each arm, allowing it to hang off both her shoulders.

She saw his defensive posture. "Calm down, it's just me," Ivy remarked. "What the hell happened to you? You just disappeared after you saved me and I haven't heard from you since."

_So that was the last thing she remembers_. Ren hated never knowing what she would or would not remember. The truth was he hadn't contacted her because he had still been a little upset with her, and had been spending time with his girlfriends to boost his confidence during the past week.

"I was starting to think something had happened to you," Ivy said almost as though she wanted to scold him.

Ren looked at her and smiled. _I'd forgotten just how cute she is_. "Have you been spending your sweet time worrying about me?"

"Only because I have nothing better to do, don't flatter yourself," Ivy replied as began to walk alongside him.

"What are you doing up this late?" he asked knowing that chatter made her more comfortable.

She shrugged. "I usually am. I find it hard to sleep at night, but then of course I want to sleep all day. It doesn't help that the sun just seems to make me tired. And when I do go out I'm so pale that I feel like I'm just cooking all the time." Ren could only relate too well. "How about you? Why are you still up?"

"More of the same," he responded indifferently.

"I suppose that explains why I don't see you during the day," she continued.

"I suppose that explains why you're always so covered up," he replied.

Ivy glanced at him, but didn't respond.

"So I've been out over the past week. What's your excuse?" he asked, keeping up the momentum.

"I've just been uncomfortable. Since I haven't been able to smoke I've been at my dad's house more, and they can be really nosy and try to keep tabs on me. I haven't been able to face my grandpa yet—I still can't come up with a good excuse as to what happened."

"Why don't you just tell him the truth?" Ren suggested.

"No," she said quickly. "I can't do that. And that's all just been stressing me out, which forms little knots in my back that are a total bitch. Not to mention I got new ink this week, so that's another wound-"

"You have a new tattoo?" Ren interrupted, seeing an opportunity. "Would you care to show it off?"

"Sure." She stopped and so did he. Ren was hopeful to see some more skin, but she collected her hair to the side and turned, simply displaying her shoulder.

Ren's smile faded when he saw what it was, but quickly overlooked this to advance on another opportunity. "Is that also where the knots are?" he asked, despite knowing where they were already.

"No," she replied. "They're between my shoulder blades."

Ren smoothly moved in, laying his hands on her back, now knowing the trick to getting her. Ivy was again immobilized, only taking her bag off as she gave into him. Ren leaned his head against hers, allowing his breath to deepen so she could feel it on her skin. Ivy tilted her head to the same side that her hair was gathered on, exposing her neck. Ren accepted this as a go ahead, slowly moving down to her neck. He kissed the spot she had shown him before, but left it at that, not feeling particularly hungry at the moment. She rested her head back against him. He could feel her muscles beginning to relax.

Ren did a test, moving his hands away from her back and slowly creeping to her sides. This time the only caution she breathed was, "Watch the ink."

With this Ren decided to be bold enough to run his hands down to her hips, etching his fingers just under the hem of her shirt. He kissed her neck again and started to slide his hands around to the front, still only slightly under her clothes.

Ivy let out a blissful hum at this, then caught his hands, stopping him. As she turned away, he held onto one of her hands and she said, "Ok, I'll give you what you want."

Ren looked down at Ivy, still rather caught in the moment, and kissed her hand. "Are you sure?" he asked. As time had passed, Ren had admitted to himself that he had been too hasty with her before. Tonight he would take his time with this one. He still hated what she said to him, and tonight he was in a different mood.

Ivy retaliated with, "You think I'm doing this as a favor to you?"

Ren smiled. This was different than his regular game, and he was rather enjoying it. He also liked how now that she had begun to give into him, he could simply pass off her spunk as 'cute.' _Finally,_ he thought,_ a human that's actually pleasant to be around_.

He held onto her hand as he began to lead her. "Well then come with me."

Ivy let go to strap her bag back on, but once it was adjusted, she took his arm, walking closer to him.

They held off on affections as they walked to his room. This time it was a bit of a walk. Ren was feeling rather serene tonight, and decided to casually ask Ivy, "So why bats?"

Ivy answered, "I haven't been able to quite figure it out, but I think they're cool." She looked up at him. "And they're actually pretty cute. Have you ever seen a real one up close?"

Ren looked down at her, echoing dryly, "Have I ever seen one up close?"

"Don't take that tone with me. How was I supposed to know?" She didn't seem that offended, but still, he didn't want to ruin the night.

He twisted his arm behind her back and leaned down, knowing precisely how to manipulate women. He kissed her cheek close to her ear and said, "You weren't." He kissed her again. "I'm sorry."

Ren straightened up and ran his hand down her back. He remained in contact for as long as he could before he pocketed it. After a minuted he felt Ivy's hand on his arm again, but this time both her hands ran down to hold his wrist, as his hand was hidden in his pocket. Ren grinned, feeling as though he had finally figured her out.

Ivy didn't seem off-put when they were quiet tonight, and Ren led her without another word, simply guiding her into the hotel. Once the doors to the elevator closed, leaving the two alone, Ivy lifted herself up a bit. She put her hand on the side of Ren's face, pulling him closer to kiss his cheek. He released his hands, placing one over her hand on his cheek, the other wrapped around her waist, pulling her to him. He let her hand slide through his as she ran it down his shoulder, her fingers sprawling out as it came to rest on his chest. Ivy again grabbed Ren's jacket, pulling him closer to kiss again.

He was gentler with her tonight, realizing how much he liked having her and took the time to enjoy it. He would have let his hand slowly drop to again cover hers, but he refrained as they now approached his floor. He instead reached into his pocket and drew out his key. "Come on," he said as the doors opened, encouraging her to stay by him.

She dropped back down, removing herself from his arms as they walked the short distance to his room. Ren noticed she was taking this time to remove her bag, and smirked. "Getting a little antsy, are we?" he asked smugly.

"Are you ever _not_ full of yourself?" she returned.

His smirk widened as he pushed open the door. Ivy dropped her bag when she entered and Ren hit the light-switch that was hooked up to a dim light by the bed. He did this because he wanted to leave more of an impression on Ivy this time, and thought she would better be a part of it if she could see.

Ren spun around and caught Ivy, pushing her up against the door. He leaned his hands on either side of her and she looked up into his eyes. Neither broke contact, and Ren reached one hand out, resting it on her cheek and slightly pushed her hair back. There was still one thing she had denied him, and he now longed for it.

"Can I kiss you?" he breathed.

"No," Ivy answered, "I have to reserve something for one that loves me."

"...And that's kissing?" he reiterated, hoping she would hear how ridiculous it was and he could again have everything he wanted.

She shrugged. "I'm unconventional."

"You certainly are," Ren replied as he leaned forward, alternatively burying his face in her hair. _Her scent_, he admired, enjoying it as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders in response.

Ivy began to tug at Ren's clothes as he guided her back toward the bed. Mostly unclad, Ren laid her down to remove her jeans. Once they were off he was then faced with her fishnets. He rose and pushed her shirt up slightly, kissing her stomach, and hooked his hands through the top of her tights. He pulled them down slowly, catching her panties on the way. As he followed his hands, he again noticed something that hadn't been there before.

As the black lingerie dropped to the floor, he lifted several fingers to brush along the thin snake that wound about her calf. He let out a brief hum of enjoyment.

"What is it?" Ivy asked.

"There's just always something new to discover with you," he replied.

"Wonderful. Now finish taking your clothes off."

Ren grinned. "Right away."

Once he had nothing left to remove, he caught Ivy, bringing her up to the center of the bed. He took the bottom of her shirt and pulled it over their heads. As he tossed it behind him, her hands slid from their sleeves and fell to rest around his neck.

He reached around to unhook her bra, and once it was gone he slid down through her arms to be with her. And tonight it was different. Ren paid close attention to her every reaction. The way she breathed, how her heart beat, how she pressed herself against him. Ren propped himself up to look into her eyes, slipping out of her arms. She was good enough to look back without breaking the gaze, and he saw her more unguarded than ever before.

Caught up in the moment, Ivy slid a hand up from his arm to rest on his cheek. As he continued to look down at her, something caught his eye. Some skin even whiter than the rest.

Ren quickly reached up and grabbed the back of her wrist, tilting it back and straightening up to look at it.

"No," she said, fiercely pulling her arm back. But even though she now kept her wrists down, he had already seen the vertical scars.

"Ivy..." And that was when he realized her shirts weren't simply a preference.

She tried to pull him back onto her, not as into it now herself but hoping his drive would make him forget about everything. But he instead stopped completely and again grabbed the back of her wrists, tighter this time.

When she couldn't pull away, she pleaded desperately, "Ren, don't. Please don't."

"Ivy," he said again. "...Why? What happened?" Everything about how Ren acted in the past was now overridden with concern. Other girls he had been with had been through a lot, but this was the first time he actually gave a damn. He couldn't bear the thought of her going through so much pain.

"Why?" she echoed. "Because I don't know if I've really ever been loved. Because I think I've only ever been used. Because I don't feel like I'm meant for this world, and I didn't want to be in it anymore." She shook her head, looking away. "But of course I failed and that only made it worse. My stepmother found me and they haven't trusted me since. I was in a hospital for awhile because they didn't know what else to do with me." Ivy looked up at him and asked bitterly, "What? Was that not another 'fun' thing to discover?"

Ren just looked down at her, still clutching her wrists. He lowered one and held it against his chest as he slightly turned the other one, exposing it to his mouth. He kissed it gently.

Ivy's gaze softened. From experience, she never expected a response other than criticism and judgement. Ren let go of the hand he held to his chest, sliding his arm down until it lay alongside her, allowing him to again lean down. As he lowered himself, he gently brought her other hand to rest on his shoulder, freeing his own to rest on her cheek, his fingertips sneaking into her hair. He continued to look in her eyes, wanting to kiss her more than ever now.

He brushed his thumb along Ivy's lips. _If I kiss her, that might only cause her more pain_, he realized. He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to hers, torn, gritting his teeth. With his pent up frustration and building hunger, he instead turned her head. Ren bit Ivy, thinking it may be the only thing he could do to make her feel better tonight.


	14. Stay

Ren's hand wove deeper into her hair as he drank. She was, no surprise, especially delicious tonight. He again felt her soften and seemingly snuggle into him more as he sucked her blood. When he was done, he extracted his teeth, but he didn't yet pull away. He held her closer to him and kissed her neck, always feeling the need to release some affection on her.

He raised himself just enough to look into her eyes again. She didn't say anything, and he thought she would say the same thing as last time. Instead she asked, "...What the hell just happened?"

"You mean you couldn't figure it out?" he asked.

"No, I did. I just don't quite follow how we went from one thing to the other."

Ren sighed heavily. "Does it matter?"

Ivy hesitated. "I guess not."

She rolled Ren over and then climbed out of bed. He rolled back to his side, propping his head up on his arm as he watched her walk away. He assumed she was escaping to the bathroom, but she instead crouched at her bag, beginning to dig through it.

"I like how you're not shy," Ren commented as he watched her.

"Oh yeah?" she replied dryly. "We were all born this way. Well, I'm not sure if you were."

"I was."

She looked back at him, finding what she wanted. "Interesting."

As Ivy returned to the bed, Ren asked, "So why did you finally give into me tonight?"

"I was that uncomfortable and thought sex might ease some of the pain" she said. "And besides, I mean, I've been trying to protect myself—I have a feeling you must have a lot of girls, thus not really able to make any emotional bonds. Knowing that going into it I finally figured, why not be one of them?"

"That was all?" he asked, not quite satisfied with the answer.

Ivy shrugged, sitting down at the edge of the bed. "Well I wanted to be. I don't hate sex," she answered simply. She sighed, "Except I like you that much more now that I know."

"Really now?" he mused. She opened her bottle of goo that she had retrieved from her bag, putting a tad on her fingers.

"Yeah, I'm drawn to the darkness, as you can plainly see..." With one hand she snapped the bottle closed, then twisted to rub the ointment on her tattoo, but upon seeing it, she cringed. "Oh God..." Ivy looked up at Ren, realizing what it was that she hadn't been able to put her finger on before.

He smiled as he finally saw it click, then taunted, "You're in love with me."

"I am _not_ in love with you," Ivy countered. "I think I would know if I were."

"You think," he echoed, "but you don't know."

She sighed, refusing to continue with the conversation, seeing as he would only be difficult and only further complicate things and inflame his ego.

He was quiet for a moment, then asked more seriously, "Why are you so accepting and open when I bite you?"

"I don't know, it felt natural." Ivy finished with her tattoo and ran her hand down her arm, leaning on it and clutching her wrist.

Ren gazed at her as she cast her eyes down to the sheets. "Stay a bit longer."

Ivy finally looked at him. "Why? What else could you want from me?" she pleaded despairingly.

"I just want you to stay with me a bit longer, unless you have somewhere better to be."

She sighed, defeated, then slid back into bed with him, laying on her stomach and crossing her arms to rest her head on them. He reached a hand out to touch her, running it along her back.

She allowed him to continue, then decided to tell him,"I wanted to you keep going."

"Just give me a minute and I can make that wish come true."

She narrowed her eyes at him, unimpressed. "Not that."

"You mean you wanted me to keep biting you?" Ivy nodded. "My apologies darling, but I can't take anymore without hurting you."

"Maybe I don't care if you hurt me," she replied simply.

Ren didn't like that. "I want to do a lot of things to you, Ivy, but I don't want to hurt you."

She gazed at him a moment then pushed herself up. She crept closer to him, turning to face him and rest on her good shoulder. Their bodies were only inches away from each other and she moved her hand slightly, watching it as she touched the back against his chest, leaving it there, her arm pressed between them. Ren placed his hand again on her skin, running it down from her hip to the thinnest part of her waist, enjoying the feel of her blood pulse through her veins and the softness of her skin.

She looked up from her hand to his eyes. "Is this what you wanted?" she asked softly.

"For the most part," replied Ren.

"I'm still not going to let you kiss me," she whispered.

"I guess I can live with that," Ren conceded as he continued to stare at her, starting to feel rather serene again. He finally had her. It had been a long process up until now, and they had been through a lot, more so than with any other girl he had ever been with.

He wanted Ivy to remember this, but he couldn't narrow the window enough for her to just forget the bite. He had to make a decision, and thought it over carefully as he continued to gaze at her.

"I'm not going to erase your memory this time," he said finally.

Ivy furrowed her brow, a little surprised, but no anger reflected in her voice. "This time?"

Ren only looked at her, realizing now that he could have chosen better wording.

"Have you erased my memory before?" she asked.

"A handful of times," he replied.

She looked at him a moment longer, hesitating. "...Have I slept with you before?" she asked nervously. His silence gave her the answer. "...How many times?"

"Just twice. Once a week ago, once three years ago."

Her eyes widened. "Three years ago?" she repeated. She thought this over a moment, then questioned, "Did I... did I lose my virginity to you?"

"Well, at least you know now. I meant for you to remember, but you didn't," he answered.

She rolled to her back, his hand sliding to her belly. She looked up at the headboard and started to close her body. "That's why... oh my god he was right," she whispered.

"What are you talking about?"

"I thought I lost my virginity to my ex, but when I didn't bleed he called me a lying whore and said he felt as though I had deprived him of something." She let out a slight laugh, but it didn't seem to suggest she thought anything was funny. "Then he proceeded to treat me like one, but I guess he was right after all."

Ren hadn't realized she had been through that, and a hate for man started to brew inside him again. _Humans really are despicable_, he sneered. _Even I don't care about the women I have, and I treat them better than that_. But Ren was also bothered because he had set her up for that treatment, even though it wasn't intentional. He glanced at her wrists again, and hated himself just a little bit. "I'm sorry." He didn't know what else to say and was quiet.

She was silent a moment, then said, "...Don't be. It's a horrible memory for a first time, I like the thought of losing it to a vampire much more." Ivy almost smiled. She turned to look at him. "Besides, since I don't remember it, it can be as good as I want it to be."

"It was good," Ren added vehemently. "I've been trying to find you since."

"Hmmm." Ivy reached out, watching her fingers as she ran them down his chest.

"What?" Ren asked.

"It's somehow validating to know that you specifically came after me for a reason. I'd just thought you had thought I was attractive enough and would be easy. It makes you less creepy."

"That's what you said last time."

"The bats that night, that was you too?" she asked, continuing to think everything over.

"It was."

Her eyes flashed up to him. "And I slept with you after that?"

"Yes."

"Did I find out then, too? Was that why I slept with you?" Ivy pondered.

"You didn't find out until later," he answered. He kind of liked watching her think.

She looked back up at the ceiling and pouted a little in surprise. "Huh," she murmured.

"In fact before you did, you made fun of me for my fangs," Ren added.

"I did?" Ivy seemed to laugh a little as she turned her head to look back at him. Finally, her body followed and she rolled back to her side, again at the proximity he preferred. "Can I see them?" she requested.

"Can I have that kiss?" he returned.

"No."

"Then no, you can't," he retorted.

Ivy reached up anyway, resting her hand on his cheek and pulling his lip down. She didn't really have time to see them, though, because as soon as she disregarded him, he felt it was then ok to do the same.

He quickly moved in to kiss her, but Ivy stopped him by catching and biting his bottom lip. She held it, preventing him from being able to kiss her, until he drew back.

"That's a dangerous game to play with me, princess," he threatened.

"Why?" she asked, smiling.

"Because I have sharp teeth-"

"No you don't," she countered quickly in an attempt to get him to prove her wrong, a big smile on her face.

"I know what you're trying to do, it won't work." He looked at her a moment. "You know, I think that's the first time I've seen you really smile since I met you."

Ivy, now self-conscious about it, rubbed her lips together, hiding them for a moment, and washed away the smile.

"I don't see how you can have supposed meaningless sex, but you can't let one kiss slide." He ran his hand to the small of her back, trying to pull her closer. "You know, if you let me kiss you, not only will I let you look at them, but you'll be able to feel them."

"Oh hell no," Ivy replied. Ren glared at her, and she explained, "I don't want to cut my tongue, that could really hurt. I don't see why you're so hell-bent on kissing me."

"I don't see why you won't let me."

"Are you in love with me?" she asked.

Ren looked at her a moment, then declared, "Of course not."

"Then no."

Ren huffed. "Well, it's your loss."

Ivy moved on, still processing. "So, do you have any other abilities?"

"I do. Do you feel any better since I bit you?"

"Maybe, why?" she answered.

"Every vampire has an affinity, or blood preference. It's always a characteristic or emotion, and we suck that out with the blood. Mine is stress."

"Interesting, I've never heard that one before. So how many of your other girls know about all this?" Ivy asked.

"What other girls?" Ren contended. Ivy gave Ren a look, clearly disbelieving him. He gave in. "None, you're the only one."

Ivy looked confused. "Why me?"

Ren wasn't sure why being this honest with her was this easy, but he knew the more open he was, the closer she would get to him and was much more likely to easily give in to him. "Because you're quite difficult and tonight has been a good night, so I wanted you to remember it. And you seem to like me more when you know. Most importantly I don't think you'll tell anyone: you're not chatty enough."

Ivy looked at him a moment before laughing and shaking her head. "You're good," she said before she began to roll away, seemingly as though she was going to leave.

Ren smiled wide. That was just what he wanted to hear. He caught her and made her come back. "Now where do you think you're going?"

"I should really leave if I'm going to get any sleep," she answered.

"Darling, it's 4:30 in the morning. If you go to sleep now you'll never wake up. You might as well stay with me." Ren pulled her against him and again went to kiss around her ear. "If you think I'm that good, I'll keep going. I won't let you get any sleep-"

Ivy pushed him back, sitting up a bit. "Again, not that."

"What then?" he asked annoyed.

She looked away, shook her head, and again tried to climb out of bed. Ren only trapped her her in his arms again, this time pulling her back against his chest, allowing her to face away. He encased her, kissing her cheek, and pressured, "Come on, if I can tell you all that, you can surely tell me what you mean."

She didn't answer him right away, but he could feel her sink back into his arms and waited patiently. All she confessed was, "You just, know how to play the game."

The ivy across her ribs was again exposed to him and he ran his fingers over it. "Go on."

Ivy hesitated again, and Ren continued to run his hand down her side, then slid it just under her silver spider. He wrapped his arm all the way around her and pulled her closer to him, kissing her exposed shoulder. "Well..." she began. "Women can find it difficult to have meaningless sex the way men do. Whether we want to or not, we can tend to develop emotional bonds-"

"I know. It can be really annoying," Ren interjected.

Ivy rolled back into him a little more. "_You_ think it's annoying? Try being the one with unwanted feelings." Ren worked to remain in denial about how he could now relate to this. "So, I haven't had intimacy in a while, and you telling me that I'm the only one you've told, it makes it hard to remain..." She sighed, "...unattached." Ivy twisted back to finally look at him, quickly adding, "But it's only to the smallest degree. I'm hoping it will be completely gone by the end of the week."

Ren smiled. "I'm not."


	15. Study Session

**Thank you to those few who have been giving feedback! It does encourage me to post! I have a few chapters written, but have a lot going on, so I need reminders to post!**

Ivy bit her lip as she tried to focus, but it was soon interrupted by her father. "Ivy," he bellowed as he advanced. "I just got a call from the school. They said if you don't get at least an 87 on this next test tomorrow, you won't pass math. Now that's unacceptable—if you don't pass math you can't graduate, so get your ass in gear-"

"I'm studying now, Dad! Or I _was_ anyway," she huffed. Ivy slammed the book shut, more than stressed, and declared, "I can't study here. I'm going to Grandpa's."

Ivy quickly slid her materials into her bag and was out the door. Her father called after her, "I'm going to call him to make sure you're there, young lady!"

"Fine," she hollered back flatly as she exited.

Ivy felt as though she was going to jump out of her skin and she couldn't shake the feeling. _This really isn't helping! And I still don't have any weed... wait_. Ivy suddenly remembered what her last alternative had been.

She quickly dug through her bag and found her phone. She walked in a quick stride under the orange sky, and realized she really had no patience to wait for him to return a text right then. She found Ren's number and hit CALL.

It rang twice before he picked up. She could hear him yawning as he greeted, "Well good morning, beautiful. This is a pleasant surprise."

Ivy didn't play around. "Ren, I need you," she said, thinking that ought to snag him.

On the other end of the line, Ren smiled and stretched. "Well it's about time."

"Yeah yeah, look, I have only tonight to learn a whole bunch of math or I can't graduate-"

"Sounds delicious," he crowed.

"Great. How soon can you meet me?"

Ren was very pleased with all this, but he wasn't about to rush out the door. "Sweetness, you just woke me up. You're going to have to wait for me to get ready."

"And how long will that take?"

"At least until the sun is out of the sky."

Ivy's head shot up and she saw that wasn't too far off. "I'll be waiting for you in the park. Be there as soon as you can." With that she hung up.

Ren stretched and rolled over, very pleased with himself.

* * *

Ivy was perched on a bench, sitting high on the back with her feet in the seat. She continued to look for Ren and kept glancing up at the horizon.

Ren arrived in a flush of bats behind her, his chest immediately throbbing. She didn't see him, but noticed as the bats rushed past her. Just as she was about to turn, she felt him wrap an arm around her, starting at her waist and creeping under her bust, pulling her against him. Ren gently brushed her hair away from her neck with his other hand before lowering it to hold her as well.

Ivy tilted her head away, resting her arms over his. She sunk back into Ren as he drove his fangs into her neck. She was absolutely delicious. He was quite hungry, as she was his breakfast, and knew she strangely enjoyed the bite, so he slightly pushed the limit on what he could take. With Ivy, he was always tempted to take more.

Ren extracted his teeth and continued to hold onto her, gently rocking her side to side as he kissed the spot he had bitten.

"Are you sure that's all you wanted?" he hinted, whispering in her ear.

"Yes, I feel much better now. But you can always take more."

"As much as I might like to, I can't. I already took a little extra."

At this she pulled his arms from her, leaning forward to get her bag. "Just where do you think you're going?" Ren asked.

Ivy turned, kicking her feet over the back of the bench. "I told you, I have a big test to study for." Then she dropped her feet and tried to stand up, but Ren knew what was going to happen and caught her as she collapsed.

"I don't think so." He pulled her against him to help her stand. "Feeling lightheaded, sweetheart?"

"No," she groaned. "I have to go, my dad's going to check on me."

"Well, he'll just have to wait. You can study here for a bit, I'll even stay with you."

"Ok," she said, feeling more relaxed and not really seeing any alternative. Ren escorted her back around the bench. He sat with his arm around her, resting it along the back of the seat.

Ivy, still feeling a bit woozy, actually curled up next to him. She bent her legs and rested them against his, placing her book in her lap. She leaned against the back of the bench and rested her head on Ren's arm. Ren smiled and placed his free hand on her leg, watching her think.

After she had covered a chapter, she sat up, testing her strength. As Ren observed this, he said, "I think you better cover another chapter, just to be safe." He had been feeling rather content, just having a tasty meal and finally having Ivy close. He also liked her temporary dependence on him.

"No, I should really go..."

Ren reached out and pulled her back. "No, I insist. Besides, aren't you finally getting it done?"

Ivy considered this, then said, "Ok, just let me call my grandpa and tell him to tell my dad I'm there."

"You're Grandpa?"

"Yeah."

"What did you end up telling him about before?"

Ivy sighed. "The truth, but I regret it. He's really taken it to heart."

Ren watched her dial and hold the phone up for a moment, and he too heard the beeping. "Damn it all," she muttered, hanging up. "He must be calling right now. I have to go." She stood up and collected her things.

"You know if you leave, this offer expires and I'll move on to other things," he warned.

"You mean other girls?" Ivy corrected.

"Yes," Ren replied, hoping it would make her jealous.

"I don't get it," she said. "Why have so many pursuits? What are they worth to you?"

"Worth?" Ren almost laughed. "They're humans, they're worthless."

"You're right," she replied, tugging at her sleeves, "we are worthless."

Ren was taken aback, not thinking she would take it to heart.

"Don't worry, you didn't offend me. It's nice to know there's someone who sees it too. Well you see it, I live it. I feel everyday how hopeless and useless I am." His eyes widened as he listened to her, but with her last comment, she simply turned and said, "Later."

She left Ren watching after her.

_Not you_, he thought, but he couldn't say this to her without admitting, and therefore accepting, that she was something more to him. He could only watch her leave.

_I didn't mean you_.


	16. You Shouldn't Have

**Luckily I was able to get out another chapter! If you ask I will try harder to find time.**

Ivy walked in the front door ready to apologize and explain. But all she saw was the phone off the hook, an empty bottle of scotch, and her grandfather with tears in his eyes and a rifle tucked under his chin.

She responded immediately, lunging forward as she cried, "Grandpa, _no!_"

Ivy grabbed him and was able to jostle her grandfather enough that the shot missed him, but it instead hit her in the shoulder. From the tussle and shot, she was pushed back about a foot, hitting the wall. Her head hit hardest and she slid down the wall, collapsing on the floor.

"Ivy!" her grandfather cried, crouching down. He felt for a pulse, but hers was weak from the blood loss—too weak for his old, drunk fingers to detect. "No, Ivy, not you too," he began to sob thinking that, like his daughter, he had killed Ivy.

He raised the gun again to his head. His final words were, "Don't worry, Ivy. I'll be there soon."

* * *

Ren had only just met up with his first girlfriend of the night. Mari flung herself into his arms. "Oh Ren, darling! How I've missed you!"

Ren caught her and held her to him. She looked at him, coming off as more needy than usual as he looked down at her. "And I've missed you. I've been rather lonely without you."

Mari began to smile, and that was all they had time for. Ren's bats, and several of Anju's as well, suddenly appeared, making quite a ruckus.

Ren looked to the sky as Mari clung to him. "Ew! Ren, protect me from those vermin!" she cried, expecting him to do just that.

Instead, she heard him breathe, "Ivy..." just before he pushed her off.

"Ren, wait! What are you doing?" she called after him, but he was already gone.

As Ren hurried he gained ground, working his way higher above the city and anything that might slow him down. He saw her grandpa's house and jumped, landing on the front step.

When Ivy had made a dash to stop her grandpa, she had flung the door back, but it hadn't completely shut. Ren hastily pushed it open. "Ivy!" he called.

Then he saw her on the ground beside her grandfather's body. "Ivy," he breathed. Ren rushed to her and knelt at her side. He took her face in his hands. He could feel her pulse on his fingertips, but it was barely there. She had lost even more blood than before and was now close to death. He didn't know what to do. If he called for human help they might not be able to save her in time, and he would have a lot of explaining to do, especially for a person who didn't exist.

"Ivy," he said again sternly. Still nothing. What she really needed was blood. Suddenly, Ren saw a solution.

He scooped Ivy up in his arms and took off as fast as he could.

* * *

Henry and Carrera were in the living room, lounging and bickering as usual, when Anju suddenly appeared and interrupted them. "Mother, Father."

They turned to her. Her mother asked, "Anju, dear, what is it?"

"I'm here to tell you Ren is coming," she said quietly. "Don't interfere."

From her arms, Boogie began to whimper, "Anju, is this really a good idea..."

Anju simply replied, "Shut up."

Her parents were, of course, concerned. "Anju, what's-" Henry started to ask, but his mother appeared and beat him to the punch.

"What's going on in here?" Elda came and leaned in the doorway, wanting someone to fess up to the tension in the room.

And that's when Ren burst through the door, holding Ivy in his arms. She was still unconscious and barely alive. Elda perked up, asking, "Ren, is that the same girl from before?"

Henry simultaneously rose to his feet and demanded, "Ren, what's going on?"

But Ren only paid attention to his sister. Anju turned to him and informed, "She's upstairs, in her room."

Ren turned and hurried up the stairs. Henry shouted after him, "Come back here!" but Anju turned back to face him, holding her ground, and he advanced no further.

Before Ren reached the top of the stairs, Elda called out after him, "Ren, you're making a mistake." But he was already gone.

The others were frozen in the living room, dumbfounded. "Was that a really a human girl he was holding?" Carrera asked.

Before the matter could be discussed, Elda continued with whatever it was she wanted to say. She sighed dramatically. "It seems I may have to help him after all. That boy of yours isn't very bright."

Carrera raised her slipper. "You watch your mouth," she threatened.

"Now, now," Henry tried to calm her, "I think there are more pressing matters at hand, dearest."

Elda was just annoyed. "Oh please," she turned away, "as if you could ever do anything to hurt me."

As they bickered, Anju kept her eyes on the stairs, hoping for the best.

* * *

Karin was sleeping when Ren burst into her room. "Karin, wake up! Out of bed, now!"

Karin sat up slowly, rubbing her eyes. She dropped her feet to the floor and asked sleepily, "Ren what is it- Ah!" She finally looked up and saw what was before her. Karin jumped to her feet in shock crying, "Ren, what are you doing?"

He ignored her as he sat Ivy on the bed. He sat next to her and kept his arm around her shoulders. Ren took Ivy's face in his hand, lifting it off his chest as he spoke. "Ivy, are you still with me?"

She groaned quietly and pinched her eyes shut a little tighter, but didn't open them. Once she showed this faint sign of consciousness, Karin felt the strongest, most painful pulse through her own body that she had ever experienced. Her hands immediately went to her nose as she asked meekly, "Ren, who- who is that girl?"

Ren turned to his sister, snapping, "Never mind that, just hurry up and bite her."

"But- but-" Karin's blood was increasing at a rapid rate due to Ivy's magnified depression and misfortune.

"Neither of you can wait any longer, now hurry up!" he roared.

With that push, Karin's instincts took over and she snatched the girl from his hands. She held Ivy tightly as she injected an incredible amount of blood into her.

Ren watched, hoping this would work. He knew that vampire blood was different than human blood, but this would still give her heart something to work with. Karin extracted her teeth and Ivy slipped from her grasp as Karin sunk to the floor. Ren caught Ivy and guided her fall down to lay on the bed. He took her cheek in his hand, getting close to her, and tried again. "Ivy?"

Her eyes opened and she looked at him, but then grimaced in pain, her hand going to her shoulder. "Ivy, what is it?" he asked frantically, thinking it hadn't worked.

"She has a bullet wound. Honestly, how do you expect blood to help when she still has a injury like that?" Ren spun around to see Elda leaning in the doorway.

"Stay away from her," he warned.

"Oh Ren, relax. You made the wrong decision, but I'm here to help you anyway." Elda took a few steps into the room, then held out a glowing golden hand over Ivy's wound. She turned away as Ivy stopped cringing, opening her hand to find a bullet.

"What the hell did you just do?" Ren demanded, looking from the bullet to his grandmother.

"Just a little thing I've picked up over the years. That wound wasn't too serious, so she was fine." Elda began to walk out. "You kids have fun now."

Ren turned back to Ivy with more pressing concerns. "How are you feeling?"

Ivy sat up, keeping her eyes on Ren as they began to fill with tears. "Ren, what did you do?" she asked darkly. Ren was taken aback.

Karin watched tensely, not doing anything as a million things raced through her mind about what she should do.

"What did you do!" Ivy shouted. She stood up and headed for the door, storming down the stairs. Ren began to seethe, and arose to follow her down the stairs.

Henry and Carrera were still baffled in the living room when they saw the girl appear, and heard their son's voice bellow angrily, "What did I do? I SAVED YOUR LIFE!"

They were speechless.

Ivy whirled back around. "Well you shouldn't have!" she spat angrily. Ren slowed on the stairs, taken aback. Her tears began to stream. "You should have left me... You should have let me- Just stay away!" She turned and quickly left through the front door. Ren came down the last few steps and stared after her.

"Ren, we need to have a family meeting," Carrera commanded.

"Apparently, we don't," he sneered. He knew this meeting would be about his relationship with the girl, and Ivy's last words had made him bitter.

"Ren, what does she know? I demand you tell me at once!" Henry said, his voice becoming fierce.

"Geez, Henry, leave him alone. He's an adult, he can make his own decisions," Elda commented from off to the side.

"But, Mama-"

She ignored her son and immediately contradicted herself by ordering, "Ren, what are you waiting for? Go after her and make sure she leaves the barrier in one piece. Honestly, you can at least _pretend_ to be a gentleman."

Ren didn't say anything, and he didn't move.

"I'll go," Anju offered her brother, who was clearly paying little attention to his parents. She began to follow after Ivy.

"No," Ren cut her off.

Anju stopped and Henry took the opportunity to again ask, "Ren, what happened?"

"Weren't you paying attention?" Elda chided, annoyed. "That girl was barely alive and Ren brought her here to save her life. It turns out that little granddaughter of mine is good for something after all."

"Ren... is that true? Did you save a mortal girl?" his father asked, stunned. Then he rejoiced, "I'm so proud of you!"

Ren clenched his teeth. "If I didn't do anything she was going to die, I didn't want to have that on my hands. That's all there is to it!" he defied before leaving promptly to finally go find her.

Karin stopped at the top of the stairs, looking down in her blood-soaked pajamas, a little late to the family gathering. "What's going on?" she seemed to whine.

"Where have you been?" her mother asked condescendingly.

Karin slowly came down the stairs. "Well... I was sleeping, and then Ren showed up and had me bite that girl. So... why isn't she happy?"

"She just watched her grandfather, the only real connection she had in this world, kill himself. There isn't much happiness to be found after something like that," Anju answered quietly.

* * *

Ivy hadn't made it far by the time Ren found her. She had collapsed to the ground, sobbing.

"Come on," he instructed firmly, beginning to pull her up.

She swatted his hands away. "No, no!" Ren fought her and was able to draw her in and hold her to his chest. Once he claimed a hold of her, she stopped fighting and sunk into him, sobbing, "I don't want it. I don't want any of it!"

Ren wasn't sure what to do for her, so he brought her to her feet, never letting go of her. "Come on," he said again. "I'll take you home."


	17. Bedtime Story

Ren remained in the shadows watching Ivy as she reached her house. There were police cars surrounding it, and he watched as she fell into her father's arms on the front step.

"Ivy!" her father cried taking hold of her. He encased her, holding her to his chest, his eyes glazed. "Ivy, I was so worried. When I couldn't get a hold of him I went over there. We've been looking for you everywhere. Where have you been?"

Ivy couldn't answer as her sobs became more hysterical. Her father stroked her hair. "Did you see him?" he asked gently.

"_Yes!_" she cried, nodding and clinging to her father as she soaked through his shirt.

"Oh Ivy," he said softly, rocking her. "What am I going to do with you?"

* * *

Ren laid in his bed, thinking over everything that had happened tonight. His parents had told him that they did need to talk to him, but would give him some time.

He laid there, fully clothed in the dark. He stared up at the ceiling, resting one arm behind his head when he heard, "Oh Reeennn."

He sat up, always jerked and afraid when he heard that voice. The door to his bedroom was in the far corner from where he was, allowing his grandmother to easily corner him. She pushed open the door and leaned in the doorway, commenting, "Ren, you still sleep in a bed? I'm surprised."

"This isn't the fifteenth century anymore," he snapped, reclining again. "Now leave me alone."

Elda put her hands on her hips and scolded him. "Ren, you're so mean to Grandma! And after all the nice things I do for you."

"Ha," he countered dryly. "Like what?"

"Like coming to talk to you after that whole bit with that girl, who you're totally in love with, by the way."

Ren shot up at this. "I am _not_ in love with her!"

"Why? Because she's a human?" Elda seemed to taunt.

"She's a very tasty human, that's all," he snapped, laying down again. "It's not like I want to _be_ with her or anything."

"Really now?" Elda returned, seeing right through him. "Well if that's all there is to talk about, I came to tell you a bedtime story," she said as she began to walk toward him, coming to sit on his bed.

"No," he groaned, rolling away from her. "Just go away."

Elda pulled him back and pinned him down to his bed, sitting next to him. "Shut up and listen!" she demanded. Ren moaned in anguish, but there was nothing he could do. "Now, have your parents ever told you the legends about siring?"

"Yes," he groaned. "Now you can go."

"Well, some believe they're true, and that the stories are based on something real," she continued, talking right over him.

Ren looked at his grandmother. "Well then they're idiots. It's not real," he responded.

"Be quiet and listen to your story! Now some believe siring is real. How do you think we were able to grow in numbers?"

"I don't know..." Ren had heard these tales before when he was a little boy, which was decades ago now.

"No one does really, so they say that's how. And no one has sired another in a very long time, which is why vampires have come to believe it's not real. Even if they tried what the legends say, it wouldn't work. What most don't know is that it takes a very specific, _rare_ person to be sired."

Ren just glared at his grandmother, not saying anything so she would finish faster.

"It can be hard to distinguish them, as of the traits can be attributed to other things. For example, these people are often unhappy, but there are lots of depressed people in the world. The trick is _what_ they are unhappy about. They tend to be upset because they find the world they live in unbearable and don't feel like they belong in it. Sometimes that can be hard to see because other tragedies veil their depression. Do you see how it's complicated?"

"Yeah," replied Ren. Though he didn't want to show it, she now had his attention.

"These people are often naturally drawn to us, which again, in this day in age doesn't mean much. And they tend to be very beautiful, since they are potentially immortal. And they naturally want to sleep during the day and are up at night. They are also much more sensitive to our powers, as they need to be in order to be turned. But affinities may not have much of an effect on them, leaving what makes us hungry to try to entice us to drink more of their blood, which they need to rid themselves of almost completely to be ready to be turned. But then there are specific qualities they have that they don't even know about."

"Like what?" Ren asked a little disdainfully.

"Oh, Ren!" Elda exclaimed, leaning her elbow on his chest and pulling her feet up onto the bed. "I knew you would like this story!" Ren winced, her elbow digging into him. She continued. "They've adapted to draw us in, as they need us to bring them into our world. Vampires with the according sexual preference usually find them particularly alluring. They embrace being bitten-" Ren's eyes began to widen as he listened to her go on. "-and are often very tasty, which is all meant to encourage us to keep biting them. See, to be sired they need to be almost completely bled out to the point where they are practically dead, as they need to rid themselves of their mortality to gain a fresh start. Once they reach that stage, they need to consume pure vampire blood and that gives them the power they need to awaken."

Ren wasn't sure if she was making this up or not. Perhaps she had been the one watching Ivy, not Anju, and knew all this about her. Maybe this was just a joke. But then, why would his grandmother be encouraging him to get this close or even engage in such a life-or-death situation with a mere mortal?

"What happens then?" Ren asked.

"Their bodies correct themselves, starting to produce the right blood and whatnot. They are like you and me, but really need an orientation into our world. The biggest thing is that they need our protection."

"Protection?"

"They will have the physical make-up and be just like me or you. They will be much stronger than they were before, heal quickly, suck blood, have an affinity instinct, all of that. The story goes that the catch is they have no powers, and have to depend on another vampire, often their sire, to erase memories and the like."

Ren's mind was buzzing, now overwhelmed with all of this on top of what had happened. "...Is that why you said I was making a mistake today?" Ren asked

"Oh Ren, don't be silly! It's just a story. Gosh you're gullible," Elda mocked as she stood up and began to leave. "Well that's it, I'm beat," she yawned. "Night, night, dear."

She closed the door after her and Ren was left alone. _So she could be... No, it can't be true._

**So, what did you all think of that? Reviews much appreciated!**


	18. O Happy Dagger

Ivy lay in the dark, her blinds drawn, holding Tarot to her chest. She hadn't left her bed in hours and had missed her math test entirely, but her father had called the school to work something out instead of making her go.

As she lay hidden in the sheets, she thought about her grandpa. She felt she had pushed him by telling him about Ringo and couldn't stop blaming herself. And she thought about how she had just lost her last true bond. By this point she was out of tears.

Her dad had been around all day, checking in on her from time to time. He now came in again and sat on her bed. "Hey, kiddo. How are you feeling?"

Ivy was mostly in a stupor and didn't answer.

"Ok, well Inari is at Sora's recital. We felt it would be better to not interrupt her schedule as she'd have trouble understanding this. As you know I have a lot I have to take care of and was hoping you would come with me."

Ivy finally spoke, responding delicately, "I don't want to go."

"I think it would be good for you-" her dad began.

"I don't want to go. I don't think I can do it. Please don't make me go," she pleaded, her voice a little stronger as she continued to stare off into nothing.

He sighed. "I really hate to leave you here alone."

She didn't say anything.

He gave in. "Ok then." He kissed her head. "I won't be far, just call me and I'll come right home." He turned back around at her door. "Do you want me to pick anything up while I'm out?" Ivy shook her head. He didn't really know what to say, so he just said, "Feel better, kiddo. Love you," before he left.

Tarot wiggled out of her arms to follow the new interesting person, and Ivy felt alone again without any sense of belonging.

* * *

As soon as he could, Ren set out for Ivy's house. He wanted to see her, and he wanted things to go back to how they had been before. Just yesterday he had managed to have her curled up next to him in the park, practically in his lap, and now he wasn't even sure if she would talk to him.

More than anything, he kept thinking about Elda's story. He kept turning the qualities over and over in his mind, and wanted to be around her now that they were at the forefront of his thoughts. He wanted to really see if that's what Elda was talking about. What he would do from there, well, he didn't know.

* * *

Ivy felt a deep anguish that she couldn't shake. What was really eating at her though, was that she had always felt this way. It wasn't new, just intensified, and she saw no end in sight. And without her grandfather and mother, the only two people she had ever had a true bond with, she didn't feel truly loved. She more than anything just wanted to go be with someone who loved her. And this is what prompted her to get out of bed. She had made a decision.

* * *

Ren's phone was busier than usual tonight. Every time it buzzed, he would promptly check it hoping it was Ivy. But it never was. It was only his girlfriends, and he was becoming increasingly annoyed with them.

As he often did when he was upset, he began to lash out at humankind, this time in his thoughts. Every foul thing he felt somehow seemed to link back to them. And then something came up. What he had been avoiding and suppressing, and that was the conflict over his feelings for Ivy.

He had been denying that he even had any, refusing to fall in love with a simple meal. But now he was starting to believe that she was something more than that. Ever since that story, he had been turning over attributes in his mind, comparing and connecting them to experiences and things he knew about her. He believed more with every step that she was potentially like him. If he had fallen in love with someone, she was indeed very well a vampire.

He wanted to believe it so badly. He wasn't sure if it was so that he could finally validate and clear up what had been going on with her, it making sense and then being ok that he felt something for her. Or if it was the other possibility: if he wanted it to be true simply because there was something he might be able to do that could finally make her happy.

* * *

Ivy's father had felt comfortable leaving her because he had locked the knives, razors, prescriptions, and anything else they found questionable up in the liquor cabinet. Her parents had never felt this despair, however, and didn't realized that someone who did saw opportunities everywhere.

Ivy had often been aware that if she ripped that metal bar off in the bathroom, the edges would probably be sharp enough to cut skin. If she broke a window, she could use the glass. Even floss could do serious damage, but they didn't see that.

However, she had no plans to use any of that. Ivy got dressed, putting on a low cut top before she laid flat on her floor, pushing clothes and other items out of the way to get under her bed. She pulled out a box, filled with the items from her mother's altar. She examined them, and found she had everything she needed.

Ivy carried the items out to her mother's garden. It was very dark out tonight and she felt protected in the void. She took her time to cast a circle, then settled between the four candles. She picked up her mother's athame, wrapping both hands firmly around the handle.

When she felt the point touch her exposed chest, she already felt better.

She was ready to leave all these people that she felt no connection with. She was all done with this world and ready to be with the people who loved her most. Ready to start again.

Ivy took a deep breath, then called out:

"This spirit needs to start anew,  
Sweet Gaia, help me say adieu.  
There is but one thing I ask of thee,  
Please," Ivy whispered, "take me where I'm meant to be."

Ivy used everything she had, every ounce of strength and every bit of sorrow, to plunge the dagger deep into her heart. Missing her mark, she didn't die instantly. She was in agony, but pleased to have all her emotional pain finally match her physical pain. With what she had left, she pulled the athame out of her chest, causing more damage to make the pain end more quickly. Only one thing was for sure: it would really be over this time, and she would no longer need suffer in this world.

* * *

Ren's head shot up. He was a few blocks away and suddenly smelled Ivy's blood. A lot of it. He no longer went in a quick stride, but moved as fast as he could toward the scent.

Four dim candles caught his eye in the darkness, and one illuminated her lifeless face. He rushed to her, quickly taking her in his arms and seeing what she had done. He sensed her wounded heart still beat, but barely, and Ren didn't know how many beats it had left.

Perhaps he should have taken just one second to debate what he should do, seeing how she clearly had no desire to live. But Ren didn't stop to think about it: he knew what he wanted. He wanted her, and was actually quite furious with her for doing this. He quickly pulled her to him, biting her one last time.

He drank until he had taken almost all of what the wound left behind.

She was paler than ever as he drew back to look at her before he finally went through with it, and there was still that one thing he wanted.

"I'm going to save you, I don't care if you hate me," he declared darkly before he leaned in to kiss her.

Ren bit his lip, piercing his own flesh with his fang and drawing a significant amount of blood. Using both arms to hold her close, Ren finally stole his kiss.


	19. Painless

She had done it. She had finally pulled it off. The pain was gone.

The first thing Ivy remembered was the lips on hers. They were pleasant, and she began to kiss back, gently. When she did, the arms that encased her pulled her tighter. It was a blissful feeling.

The other person pulled away, ending the kiss. And Ivy was jerked when she heard his unexpected voice: "Do you know how long I've waited for that?"

Ivy's eyes shot open. It was Ren who held her in his arms, looking down at her. "Ren?" she murmured weakly, not really sure what was happening. She closed her eyes and rolled her head against his chest, and he continued to hold on as she weakly sat up. Ivy looked around to see that she was still in the same place she had just been. She was beyond confused as she saw the blood everywhere, covering her and the athame.

"...How am I still alive?" Ivy asked.

"You're not," Ren replied bluntly, his answer tinted with a smugness.

She was still confused. "Can you vampires interact with ghosts or something?"

Ren smiled at her remark. She still was just as cute. She didn't seem broken. She was ok. "No, there's no such thing."

Ivy continued to wrap her head around it. "Then... how did my wound heal? Why am I not sad anymore? What's going on?"

"Don't worry about that now," Ren directed contently. "How do you feel?"

Ivy wasn't entirely sure. "I feel... much better, but, it's so different. Everything feels different. I like it, but- I'm rather... disoriented."

Ren knew that his night would now be completely dedicated to her care. "You've been through a lot, so we're going to take this step by step. You'll have to trust me for that to work out, and then everything will come together."

He helped Ivy come to her feet. She clung to him and he didn't let go, enjoying this probably more than he should as he watched her carefully. She asked again, "What's going on?"

"You still haven't figured it out?" He gave her a moment.

She looked up, staring at him as he waited patiently, and she realized the other possibility. "...There's no way..."

Ren reached up, taking her chin in his hand, and pulled down her bottom lip. He smiled, it slowly becoming real for him too. "Look at those adorable little fangs."

Ivy reached up quickly to touch them with her hand, knocking his out of the way in the process. Once she felt them, she looked up at Ren, concerned.

"Don't worry," he assured as he began to walk with her. "You can only change if you're meant to; I'm taking you to where you were supposed to be. But the first rule of awakening is you have to remove all traces of yourself from the human world. We may have to play it different with you though, seeing as you have a human family."

He began to walk with her to the dark house. Ivy was recovering quickly, but was still pretty disoriented. She asked, "Well then what am I supposed to do?"

"You have no reason to ever come back here. Pack only your bare essentials, and you can take that as literally as you like."

Ivy looked up at him. "You never stop, do you?"

He smiled. "Not for a second. And besides, you're mine now."

"Oh really?" she countered, coming to quicker with each second. "We'll see about that." With that she turned and went to her room. She saw just fine in the dark now, and never bothered to switch on a light. Ren followed slowly, looking around the house that he had so often watched with his bats. It was odd to finally be there in real life.

When Ivy entered her room, she saw that Luna still sat perched in her nest. She had been so single-minded before that she had completely forgotten about her. Upon seeing Ivy, Luna came to life. Before she had been simply resting, but showed a full recovery as she jumped into flight, surprised to see a vampire walk in, and it be Ivy no less. This whole ordeal sharply caught Ivy's attention, but she was much calmer about it than the bat.

"I'm glad to see you're feeling well, Luna," Ivy said, cupping her hands and holding them out to the bat. "Let me take you out, as I myself will be leaving here soon." The bat calmed down at this, landing in Ivy's hand with a little plop as she fell gracelessly onto her belly.

Ivy busily whirled around once she had her, bumping into Ren (who had finally caught up). "Easy now," he said, gently bringing his hands to rest on Ivy's hips.

But she wasn't having any of it. She quickly twisted out of Ren's arms with a quiet, "Excuse me," as she continued on her way. Ren frowned after her until she turned the corner at the end of the hall. While Ivy carefully tossed Luna into the air outside, Ren looked around her messy room from the door frame, where he was only pushed out of the way again. This irritated him, but he quickly forgot about it as Ivy got down on her hands and knees, bending over still further to see under her bed. As she extracted a bag, Ren thought about all the things he would like to do to her, but resisted, much more anxious to take her away.

With the bag in her grasp, she sat up, placing it on her bed. Ren watched as she gathered her clothes and everything she used on a daily basis, along with a select few other items. Once Ivy had packed everything, there was only one thing left to do. "I've decided it would be best if you write a note explaining that you've runaway, not to worry about you, and most importantly not to look for you," Ren announced.

"Is that really the best way?" Ivy questioned.

"It's certainly better than what you had planned," Ren replied, glancing at her bloody shirt. She couldn't contend with this, and wrote the note as best she could, adding that her grandpa's death had really cleared up a lot for her, and assuring that she was going to be all right. When she set the pen down, she looked up at Ren. "Do you have everything you need to sever all your ties with this place?"

Ivy looked up at him. "That woman," she said in a daze. "She really was your grandmother, wasn't she?"

Ren was taken aback. "Are you starting to regain your memories?"

Ivy shrugged apologetically. "I guess."

"Huh," Ren said to himself. "She never said anything about that."

"And, you have a younger sister-"

"I have two," Ren replied flatly.

"The one with the doll. Am I going to see her?"

"Yes, Anju will be there. Karin will as well."

"Anju," Ivy repeated quietly to herself, thinking back to the girl. Then she looked directly up at Ren. "I'm done here."

Ren offered her his hand. "Are you ready to see some more vampiric powers?"

Ivy accepted his hand. "I suppose."

Ren led her out into the yard, wrapping his arms around her. She did the same, knowing something was about to happen, and he took her with him to the sky.

* * *

It felt strange to Ren, actually bringing a girl home, as he walked through the front door with his arm around Ivy. Coming to the house, Ivy was again thrown off. She hardly remembered it from last night—everything had been a blur.

When they walked through the door, Henry, Anju and Carrera looked up. Henry saw Ren first, and began, "Ren, you're home early-" and then they saw Ivy, and they were again bewildered.

"Please tell me he's not trying to make up to her for last night," Carrera murmured to her husband.

Ren had been carrying Ivy's bag like a proper gentleman, and dropped it once they entered. "Wait here, I need to talk to my parents," he mentioned to Ivy.

"Ok," Ivy responded quietly. She watched Ren walk into the living room, then began to look around.

"Ren, are you ready to tell us just what the hell is going on, and why there's a mortal girl, covered in blood no less, standing in my foyer?" Carrera asked flatly, crossing her arms.

Ren pocketed his hands, standing before his parents. He took a deep breath. "Well..." He had no idea what to say. Good thing Grandma was home.

Elda emerged and saw Ivy, then threw her arms up in delight. "Reenn! You did it! You actually sired her!"

Carrera's face dropped as Elda ran to hold the unsure Ivy. "_What _did she just say?" she asked, astounded.

"Mama, siring is just a legend-"

"I'm thinking it might not be," Carrera cut off her husband, looking more closely at Ivy.

Elda continued to dote on Ivy, very excited and proud. "To think, my grandson was able to sire such a pretty girl!" She took Ivy's head and held it to her chest.

Ivy was dazed, but slowly reached out and held the matriarch in return, not being doted on like this since her mother passed. Elda loved it. "Oh Ren, she's adorable! Why didn't you tell me you were going to sire her? I would have come! The first sired vampire from the Maaka clan in centuries!"

"It looks as though she isn't joking," Anju remarked, sounding, as usual, as though those few words had zapped up all of her energy.

"Ren, how come you didn't consult us on this before you did it? This is kind of a big deal," implored Carrera.

"I didn't have the time," he answered. Ivy had captured his attention again, and he watched her as Elda clung to her. He was also monitoring to make sure Elda didn't hurt her. "There wasn't much of a choice."

Elda finally pulled back to get a better look at her. "Oh my, what happened here? You could use a shower to clean all that blood off."

Ivy began to look down, but Elda was quickly rushing her off to the bathroom.

Once they were gone, Anju mentioned, "This is the same girl Ren has fallen in love with."

"Stay out of this, Anju," Ren snapped, whirling back around to glare at her.

"Ren," Henry marveled, "you're in love?"

"Of course not," he denied.

"Ren," Carrera advised, crossing her arms and waving a hand as she spoke, "if you're going to make such life changing decisions for the girl, at least be honest with your feelings for her."

Ren remained silent as Elda came back out quickly. She went straight for Ivy's bag, which was still in the foyer. "Just picking out some clean clothes!" she announced. "I'm going to get something to show off her bats!"

"...Her bats?" Carrera echoed. "She already has bats?"

"Yes. Ren, _you_ must know what I'm talking about," Elda claimed as she dug through the bag.

"Ivy has a bat tattoo," Ren explained to his mother, "because she's in love with me."

Anju wasn't able to contain herself enough to completely hide her laughter, quickly attempting to stop.

Ren snapped his head in her direction again, boiling. "I said stay out of this, Anju!"

She exuded enough discipline to again find composure.

"Ren, do you have any favorite undergarments of hers?" his grandmother called, still on her own agenda.

"Elda!" Carrera growled.

"What is it this time?" Elda finished selecting Ivy's clothes and looked into the living room.

Carrera motioned to Anju, who sat watching stoically. "Oh she'll be fine," Elda brushed off as she turned to head back. "She said she's been watching the girl, so I'm sure she's seen worse. Ren, don't forget to bring this up to your room!" she chimed, referring to the bag.

Ren looked back at his sister. "You were? How much did you see?"

"I let you have your privacy," Anju answered.

Ren was quiet for a minute, thinking all this over. There was so much that he hadn't had time to consider. He knew now that he was in this, he needed to do it right. For her. It was all rather overwhelming to him, and he actually swallowed a bit of his pride and turned to his parents for advice. "So now what?"

"Well, first things first, she's bound to get hungry soon. You'll have to take her out and guide her," Henry began. "Aside from that, we'll take it as it comes. I don't know what she knows, but we'll have to have a family meeting to make everything clear."

Ren began to turn away to collect her things, still clearly lost in thought, when Anju added, "And big brother, be gentle with her. She's just been through a lot."

"Yeah," he muttered,"I know."

Ren continued on, taking her things with him. Once he was gone, Carrera sank back, bringing a few fingers to her forehead. "What has he gotten us into?" she grumbled.

"Carrera, do you think this might mean that he's actually growing up?"

"Not in the least," she replied.

"Actually, I've been watching her, and I think she will be good for big brother Ren," Anju disclosed.

"Hmmm," replied Henry, putting a hand up to his chin. "You know, I might have to agree with you there, Anju. And just maybe he'll stop being so grouchy all the time."

"Ren's extremely promiscuous, how can you possibly expect this to turn out well?" insisted Carrera.

All Anju answered with was, "She's different."

**Thank you so much for the reviews! It really does make me post faster!**


	20. Introductions

Ren was reclining on his bed, waiting. As the oldest child, he was lucky enough to have a decently sized bed before his sisters came along. This had become quite convenient, due to the circumstances.

Now that he was finally alone, he had some time to really think over what had happened. He thought about how his life would change, what maybe he should and could do differently. Ren's usual M.O. was to find human women to use for meals and sex. Ren liked sex, but had always felt somewhat degraded having to sleep with his meals, seeing as his family members were the only other vampires in the area.

But now he didn't have to feel that way, not anymore. In fact, now he didn't have to arrange times to have sex. He could even be impulsive. He smiled, realizing that he could now potentially have sex any time he wanted. In addition to that, he would have someone other than his annoying family when he was stuck inside on a sunny day. And unlike the human girls he was using, he didn't have to entertain Ivy. "Perhaps this will be quite delightful after all," he mused aloud.

From outside his door, Ren heard a muffled, "...and here's the final stop of the tour, my dear grandson's room!"

"...You don't have a guest room or anything?" he heard Ivy ask timidly.

Ren stood and crossed his room, opening the door. He grabbed Ivy's arm and dragged her in. "No, you're stuck with me."

He tossed her gently into his room, away from the door, then swiftly turned back to shut it firmly. Once it was locked, he turned back to Ivy. He looked her over as he thought about all the things he could say to her. Ren was extremely pleased with what he saw.

The snake on Ivy's leg was finally able to breathe as she stood before Ren in a skirt for the very first time. It was black, with a band coming in just below the waist. The gathered fabric expanded as it fell appeasingly over her curves. The skirt had many ends, coming to almost sharp points inches above her knee, while the shorter cut-outs in between teased Ren, as though with her next movement they could just maybe show something off. Her shirt was white and basic, the fabric tight and sleeves long. It was cut almost as though it was strapless and showed off her bats, just as Elda had wanted. Her skin was such a shade of ivory that it was hard to tell where the shirt ended and her flesh began.

Ivy just looked back at Ren, her hands to her ribs as she chipped away at her black nailpolish, waiting for him to say something

He thought about how he could apologize for his family. Give her some more information about them, or the house, or being a vampire in general. Or he could address what his mother had last said to him, _"At least be honest with your feelings for her..."_

But there was so much that he was overwhelmed, and could only bring himself to ask, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm starting to get hungry," she confessed. "...So now what?"

Ren smiled. He was rather looking forward to this. Once he saw her as a true vampire, he would not have to hold back and deny his feelings for her any longer: everything could be unleashed. Not to mention, seeing her feed would probably be an immense turn on.

"Then we should get going, seeing as it can sometimes take a while to find a meal, especially since we don't know your blood preference," he disclosed. "My dad wanted to have a family meeting, but I have no problem making them wait." He turned back to open the door. He held the door and extended his other hand to her. She hesitantly accepted it, and he led her down the stairs by the hand.

As they went, she asked, "So, do you ever eat human food?"

"No," Ren replied flatly.

"How are we going to find my affinity?" she continued, with hundreds of other questions buzzing through her mind.

"Don't worry, I helped my little sister find hers," Ren assured as they reached the bottom step. He turned to his parents, still in the family room. "I'm going to take her out: she's hungry," he announced.

"Now wait, Ren-" his father began, standing up as Ren began to turn.

Ren rolled his eyes and turned back to say, "We don't really have time now to hear your lecture-"

"No, we'll wait until Karin's awake. It would really be unfair to wake or exclude her. But you haven't even introduced us to this young lady yet," Henry remarked.

"Huh? Oh yeah..." Ren realized, never thinking of it, as no one ever really brought an outsider home before.

"Allow me to introduce myself, I'm Henry Maaka, Ren's father. This is my wife, Carrera, and our youngest daughter, Anju. You've already met my mother, Elda, and you'll properly meet our other daughter Karin when she wakes up."

"I'm glad to see you, big sister," Anju added. Ren felt Ivy squeeze his hand at this, and he was beginning to gather that Ivy was rather fond of Anju.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all. My name is Ivy. Thank you so much for having me in your home, I really appreciate this."

Until now, Ivy had come off as quite timid and passive. Carrera perked up a little when she finally heard the girl speak, surprised by how put together she was. "So it looks as though Ren actually managed to find a nice girl. I'm impressed," she remarked

Ren closed his eyes and gritted his teeth at this, insulted. "We'll be back later," he snapped, turning and pulling Ivy along behind him.

"Ren," Henry called after him.

"What is it this time?" he asked, whirling around. Ivy simply stopped and waited.

"Keep a close eye on her, Ren. Don't let anything happen," Henry reminded his son sternly.

"I know that," he snapped as he turned back around, slamming the door behind them.

"Is it really the best idea to send _Ren_ with her on the first night?" Carrera questioned.

Henry turned to his wife, considering this. "Do you think we should send Anju after them?"

"No," Anju answered, eyes still on the front door. "Like I said, this will be good for big brother Ren."

* * *

When they were outside, Ivy looked around the yard as she walked alongside Ren. "So where do you live, exactly?" she asked, not really recognizing anything.

"We live inside a barrier," Ren explained. "You'll be able to find your way back, but it keeps humans from finding or coming across us." Ren still held Ivy's hand and begun to swing it a little bit. He had enjoyed her company before, but was quite content to do what was coming next. Everything was becoming more meaningful, as he was now able to share in this vampiric activity with a girl. He always enjoyed when he could really get to the roots of his vampirism, and had enjoyed time with Ivy, but now he didn't have to pretend anymore. He didn't go his separate way after. He was able to now fully be what he was, which was what he loved, with a pretty vampire girl. Before, any business like this had felt like duties to family, not really being exciting when he was with any of them. But now it was more fun, as though there was something new that he could learn about her. And at least for tonight, it was inevitable that he would be her man.

"So we're going to head out and walk around a little bit. You'll know without a doubt when you find one that appeals to you. Then tell me when you do, and most importantly remain composed. We'll isolate her, and when you're done I'll erase her memory. I don't want you to start feeling sick, so we'll just get to it on the first one. After that we'll try to find a pattern among the ones that entice you. How's all that sound?" he asked, making sure she understood.

She recounted it all quickly, then answered, "It sounds good."

Ren had his concerns about how she would perceive all this, coming from the human world and having lived as one up until tonight. He tested her. "Are you ok with that? Do you think you can do it?"

Ivy looked up at him, and he could see in her expression already that his concern was not a concern of hers. "I should be able to do that. It seems a lot more civil than what people have done to each other. And I mean, we're just taking a little blood, it's not like we're doing any damage, right?"

Ren smiled wide. "Exactly right. You might just be a natural after all."

"So how will I know how much to take?"

"I'll stop you if it looks like you're going to take too much. You'll get a feel for it eventually," he answered, quite happy with how this was going, and growing increasingly proud of his little vampiress.


	21. Victim

The two were starting to move into the city. Ivy's hair was mostly dry now. She dropped Ren's hand to gather her hair and run her fingers through it a few times, detangling the deep red clumps.

"Remember, just tell me when you find one," he reminded her.

Ivy began to look around, really studying the people as they passed. Ren kept an eye on her, helping guide her through the crowd. No one had appealed to her still when Ren was bombarded.

"Oh Ren!" a girl cried, running into his arms. He caught her, but leaned back in surprise. She pulled him close and kissed him, continuing to hold on and lean into him as she dropped back down. "Ren I've missed you so much." She noticed Ren glance at Ivy nervously and turned to look at her.

"Who is this?" she asked a little nervously. This girlfriend in particular was more confident than the others, and wanted to at least give Ren the benefit of the doubt.

"Um-" he began, trying to think of a way to not offend either of them.

"Don't worry," Ivy piped up. "I'm his sister's friend. She had a meeting I couldn't go to with her so Ren was nice enough to just hang out with me until she gets out." She looked at Ren. "Well go ahead. I'm not here to interrupt what you had going on already. You don't _have_ to stay here with me, I can wait on my own."

Ren considered this for a second. Was this a test? No, she really didn't seem bothered, which Ren was somewhat grateful for because it was less grief he had to deal with. At the same time, when she showed no signs of jealousy it pissed him off a little, and could make him wonder how much she really liked him.

Ren did have an opportunity before him, and without intending to meet up with her, he could easily erase her memory and not have to waste any time with her. "If you say so," he replied, glaring at Ivy. He turned down to the female still pressed to him. "Come on darling, let's go," he said, putting an arm around her and beginning to usher her forward.

Ivy watched them leave, then crossed her arms and looked up to the sky. She had known better than to expect anything different from him when they set out. Whatever he wanted to do was fine by her, so long as she could stay unattached emotionally.

Ren rushed to find a secluded spot. "Ren, geez. What's going on? Why are you so antsy?"

"It's just that I've missed you so much, darling," he replied, keeping his eyes peeled. "I don't think I can wait to get you alone." The truth was, he was extremely anxious about leaving Ivy alone when she was hungry and only getting used to herself. He decided to take a fair amount from this victim, not wanting to have to stop to do this again tonight if he could get away with it.

"Oh Ren," she responded, leaning into him and running a finger down his chest. "You're so naughty."

He found a place secluded enough and didn't waste any time. He took the girl in his arms, and she easy complied, embracing him as he bent down. When he bit her, she was a little surprised, not really believing that's what he was doing. She thought he might just have gotten a little rough with her, and gently tried to push him off. Ren only squeezed her tighter.

* * *

Ivy sighed as she stared up at the sky, then lowered her eyes to look around her. This was rather boring, and she really had no idea as to how much time he would take.

As she thought this over, Toshiro came out of a nearby store. When he saw her, he clutched the bag in his hand a little tighter. He went to call out to her, but then second guessed himself. He had heard about her grandpa though, and that gave him the extra push to call out, "H-" He was so nervous even he could barely hear himself, and then said louder, "Hedera helix!" Then he flinched.

Ivy's eyes widened and she felt a pulse through her body when she heard his call.

"What...?" she murmured quietly to herself as she began to turn around. He looked a lot more attractive than she remembered. And then she knew. _So this is it_, she thought to herself, acknowledging what it felt like to find her victim.

She smiled contently. "Hiro." She cautiously began to step toward him, and he was frozen to his spot. She slowly stopped before him. Toshiro could only keep his eyes fixed on her for a second at a time before they could dash back to the ground. A million thoughts and emotions were racing through him. He quickly tried to figure out what he should do, evaluate how she was reacting, figure out how he was coming across. He must have seemed like a fool, as always. And was he being a burden to her? Did she even seem to want to talk to him? Was he just taking up space on the city sidewalk?

But he failed to notice, Ivy was transfixed. She barely moved, a deep calm now floating over her with a single thought on her mind.

"I-I heard about your grandpa, I'm sorry," he stammered as she eyed him.

Ivy tilted her head. "Thank you," she accepted wholeheartedly. Ivy looked back. Ren was nowhere in sight, but there was a dark alley nearby... and she was starving. She turned to look back at Toshiro. "You know I'm so lucky you came along," she said sweetly. "I really need to cut down that alley there, but was scared to do it alone. Would you please escort me?"

"Um-" Toshiro replied quickly. He was taken aback at her proposal, wanting to, but also a little afraid to walk down that alley. Seeing as he had been picked on most of his life, he wasn't confident that he could actually protect her from anything. Then Ivy batted her eyes. "Y-yeah!" he exclaimed.

Ivy grinned, gently taking his arm and encouraging him, "Come on."

They reached the darkest part of the alley, and Toshiro was quite frightened, but he didn't want to give Ivy cause to let go of his arm. However when she slowed and loosened her grip, he became even more afraid, then immobilized as she gently turned him toward her. Ivy began to gently run her hands up his sleeves, starting to lean into him. Toshiro remained frozen, not really knowing what to do, and not really believing this was happening.

Ivy brought her hands to rest on his shoulders, then pressed him back to the wall. He felt her breath on his cheek, and then on his neck as she brought her face closer to his. He could feel her breathing deepen as her chest began to press harder against his. She began to slide her hands inward, weaving one into the back of his mess of hair, the other delicately pulling his collar away. He wasn't able to see her eyes begin to glow red, and leaned his head back blissfully as he felt her nuzzle into his neck, closing his eyes.

They shot right back open as he felt her teeth sink into his skin. He dropped his bag, and any part of him that had begun to relax was again tense. Toshiro wasn't sure what to make of this. He had never been with a girl before, so he wasn't sure what was supposed to happen. But aside from...that...she still felt nice as she fell around him. And she seemed content as she held herself against him, running her hand up through his hair to the top of his head, tenderly curling her arm around it as she pulled him closer.

Meanwhile, Ivy was in ecstasy. His blood was so delicious, so warm and smooth as she cradled him almost lovingly. Then Toshiro looked ahead of him and begun to get scared again. "Um, Hedera, there's a- a-"

"Ivy, that's enough," Ren growled. He stood glaring at the scene, his posture upright to display his height over what he perceived to be a tiny man. He was extraordinarily upset at finding her like this, for so many reasons.

Ivy gently released her teeth from Hiro's neck, licking her lips. As she drew back slowly, she kissed his cheek and gently took his face in her hands. Toshiro watched her hesitantly as she slowly opened her eyes. "You were wonderful," she praised kindly.

Toshiro got a little caught up in the moment, and was a little shy and happy. "I was?"

Ivy smiled warmly and Ren completely lost his temper. He grabbed Ivy, pulling her back and holding her against him in one arm, the other lashing out to pin Toshiro, placing his hand flat over Hiro's face.

"Be gentle with him, he's been good to me," Ivy requested she contently brushed some blood from her chin. Ren began to clear his memory.

"Perhaps I wasn't clear," Ren denounced. "You can't bite men, because then I have to touch them."

Ivy laughed quietly at Ren's actions, seeing what was going on. Then taunted, "What's the matter, don't you want a kiss now?"

His blood had just been on her lips, as they both well knew. "That's not funny," he said darkly.

"Oh, it's very funny," Ivy defied.

This only pissed Ren off more, and he finished with Toshiro, tossing him to the ground. This pulled Ivy from her content state. "Oh Ren, that was unnecessary," she chided, ridding herself from his grasp. A woman had never escaped his grasp before, and he was put off by her being able to do it now that he had turned her. As she bent down get Toshiro, she asked, "Are you seriously jealous of Hiro?"

Ren's eyes widened. "You mean you _know_ him?" he fumed.

"Yeah, he's my lab partner, or he was," she replied as she stood, supporting him. "My extremely tasty lab partner."

"You can't do that, you're supposed to completely remove yourself from your old life," he snapped.

"You really ought to do a better job of explaining things," she replied, putting it back on him as she skillfully leaned down to grab Toshiro's bag. "Now let's go."

**What are you all thinking of the developments after the twist?**


	22. Intelligent

"So I'm thinking it's smart or shy," Ivy announced. She was trying to pull Ren out of his mood as she didn't want to deal with it.

Her comment on her affinity did pull Ren from his thoughts. "Well we can test both of those," he replied. Ren glanced over his shoulder to check the road as he said, "And I know just the person to test it on."

Ivy glanced back at Hiro, who was now coming to at the alleyway entrance where she had left him. "Oh please don't let it be smart," she murmured to herself. Though she had momentarily distracted Ren with her comment, her last sentiment unraveled her success. He turned his eyes to her, seeing her staring affectionately after the sub-par human, and his anger flared up again. Ren grabbed Ivy's arm and pulled her across the street.

"Where are we going?" she asked as she turned to look up at him.

"We're going to the university," he spat. "One- well a few of my girlfriends live there. This one in particular is definitely a college girl, but she still does well despite going out. She was the valedictorian of her graduating class and is in the honors program at the university on a full ride. She should determine if you have a preference for smart people or not. Shy will be harder to test." By this point he had dragged her across the street and pulled her into an alley. He turned her to face him, stressing again, "And we will _only_ be testing on females."

As he looked at her, he noticed that, though she hadn't been as messy as his sisters, she did still have a few drops of blood on her shirt. He decided that it was discrete enough that she could get away with it, but was disgusted that she carried a stain from that _man_. Ivy looked up at him, her eyes big and beautiful, and she remained silent. He was briefly distracted by how ethereal he found her, and then again surprised that she was still right there with him. The realization that she was staying with him calmed his nerves. He dropped her arm and turned away, beginning to walk ahead. Ivy didn't wait to follow, but she still said nothing, not wanting to say something to provoke him again.

After he walked a distance with her, he mentioned, "That was a quick lie before, about being my sister's friend."

"Yeah, well when you've had a crazy jealous boyfriend, you learn to be inventive real quick," she responded.

He glanced over at her before fixing his gaze up ahead of them. "So how was your first bite, despite it being a man?" he asked disdainfully, but attempting to lead her away from the unpleasant topic.

"It was wonderful," she breathed, bringing several fingers to her lips as she recalled her first. "Nothing ever felt right like that to me." She looked up at him, and saw that he was all too purposefully looking ahead. He was pissed again.

"Hey Ren?"

"What is it?" he asked. He still didn't look at her, but he felt her first use her fingers to hook his pinky and and pull it a little closer before quietly sliding her hand through to hold his.

"...I remember now."

He looked down at her and slowed, turning to face her. She stopped with him and pivoted her body to face his as well. "Remember what?" he asked. Ivy raised her eyes to him, but said nothing. Then Ren knew, "What I've wanted you to remember?"

Her eyes flashed down and then back up as a tiny smirk found her lips. "I don't have to pretend cluelessly that it was good anymore..." She brought her second hand to hold his one, looking at him with a glimmer in her eye.

That was it, what he had wanted from her for so long. Ren more than anything wanted to kiss her right then, but he still couldn't get over the idea that a man's blood had just been on her lips. This little notion from her did make him content enough to smirk as he turned and led her on, having her once again.

Ren kept her close to him as they winded through the back of the city, where there was hardly anyone to see at this hour. Soon the scenery opened up, no longer dominated by skyscrapers. The new scene was expansive, consisting of carefully landscaped areas around large brick buildings.

Ren brought Ivy straight to Ayako's dorm. Just as they reached the door, several students were stepping outside to smoke. Ren caught the door and Ivy dropped his hand to push it open as she followed him into the building. She continued after him silently up three flights of stairs, then down a mostly quiet hall. They stopped at a door that had 'Ayako' and 'Kei' printed on paper stars stuck to the door.

Ren knocked twice and stood back. A girl answered in sweatpants and a sweatshirt bearing the university's name. She was wearing glasses and a worn out expression. A somewhat messy, empty room could be seen behind her, plastered in posters. A glowing laptop sat on one of the desks.

"Ren," the girl breathed in relief. "I'm glad you showed up." Ren stayed put as she strutted back to her desk, pressing a button on her phone next to her computer to make it too light up. "Ayako's really drunk and just called asking me to go and help her walk back. She says she's afraid she'll 'get raped' if she goes herself, even though it's way late and _nobody_ is walking the grounds now. But I'm working on a really important paper and I'll probably be up all night," she sighed. "Do you think maybe you could go get her?"

"Of course," Ren agreed kindly, his eyes fixed on the girl.

"Thanks," Kei said, strutting back and laying a hand on the door. "She's in Dunsworth." The girl went to close the door and Ren caught it.

"Could I just grab a jacket from her room first?" he asked smoothly, his eyes still fixed on the girl.

"Yeah, sure," Kei offered, heading back to her desk.

"Wait for me here, and don't go anywhere this time," Ren said to Ivy under his breath as he passed. Ivy watched as he closed the door behind him.

He reappeared a few minutes later, and this time when he opened the door, Ivy could see the girl with her head on her desk and Ren's clear bite marks on her neck. Ren had no jacket in his hands.

"Ok, let's go," he directed as he closed the door behind him.

They walked together swiftly and quietly to Dunsworth, where they found Ayako out on the step, alone in the night and rocking a bit as she tried to keep her balance. She was dressed up (though barely) for a night out, her hair disheveled. When she saw Ren walking toward her, she got excited and raised her arms up as she called out his name. She didn't stand up, waiting for him to come closer, as she wasn't really good at standing at the moment.

"Well hello, beautiful," he greeted. Ivy walked next to him silently, and the girl said nothing about her, seeing as this was a campus and people always seemed grouped together.

When they were close enough, she stood. "Ren, it's you, you're here!" she slurred falling into him.

"Yes darling, I stopped by your room and your roommate sent me."

"Oh, is she mad at me? Ren, do you think she thinks I'm a drunk?" the girl seemed to whisper, almost as though she was trying to keep her question a secret.

"Of course not," he replied, putting an arm around her to steady her.

She seemed to immediately forget about it, looking down at her dress. "Ren do you think this dress makes me looked slutty?"

"No, I think it makes you look beautiful," he answered, looking to Ivy to see what her reaction was to the honors student.

"Aww," Ayako slurred, reaching her hand up and clumsily brushing his face. Then she turned to Ivy. "How about you?" Ayako asked, trying to keep her balance as she looked down, pulling at her dress. "Do you think this dress makes you- think me- do you think I'm slutty?" she tried, unable to construct a proper sentence.

But Ivy's eyes were locked on her and she said nothing. Ren knew that she had just gotten hungry. Her eyes then flashed past Ren to a dark spot under a tree about fifty feet away. "Over there," she said quietly, trying to contain herself. Ren followed her gaze, then looked at Ayako.

"Come on, sweetheart, just hold on to me," he instructed. Ivy gave them a moment, watching the girl, then followed behind.

Ayako wasn't really seeming to process where they were going, but when he stopped beside the tree and started to let go of her, she asked, "Why- where are we?"

Ivy took her hand, looking up at the girl whose heels were sinking into the grass. Ayako turned to see Ivy lick her lips, her pupils constricted.

Then Ivy sprung. She had linked her hold under the girl's arms, her breath on her neck, tempting her senses. She didn't take as long to play with her food this time. Ivy ran a hand up into Ayako's messy hair, then bit down.

Ren watched silently, nearly entranced. He had been looking forward to seeing her bite, a girl that is, but had never put the two thoughts together. He now saw the marriage as a tantalizing display of girl on girl action, adorned with the dark sweetness of vampirism, and he loved it.

He also loved watching Ivy feed. She was rather adoring when she ate, much like how a toddler plays with her ear as she sips her juice. Except Ivy was a lot more intense, and reminded Ren of what he liked to do with women. Ivy's hands rand down, holding the girl's shoulders from the back. She pulled one of the straps of Ayako's dress down as her clawed hands ran over the girl with pleasure.

Ivy released and stepped back, letting the girl fall to the ground. Her eyes were closed as one of her sprawled fingers grazed her parted lips, brushing the blood off. Ivy brought the finger between her lips and slowly sucked the blood off of it. Ren couldn't take it anymore.

He rushed her, spinning her and pushing her back the short distance to the tree. He pressed her to the tree with his own body, his hands on her waist. "I can't take it anymore," he whispered lustfully before he leaned in to kiss her.

Ivy stopped him again, bringing her fingers to his lips. "Are you trying to tell me something?" she asked quietly.

_Still? She's STILL on that? _He drew back and huffed. "Love is a pretty strong word. I was guessing it would be ok, granted the situation we're in. Are you ok with that, or are you going to lay beside me every day and continue to deny me?"

Ivy realized he had a point. And when he mentioned laying beside him, it reminded her of all that had changed. It was then that she realized Ren was now the only one like her. She reached up, placing a hand behind his head, and gently guided his lips against hers.

Ren felt gratified in a way he never had before as he kissed Ivy. She had the taste of blood in her kiss as her sweet lips parted with his. He felt her hand run up over his chest to then meet the other around his neck. And he felt her fangs brush his tongue as their kiss deepened, and he smiled.

His hands crept down her body as both their breathing began to grow heavier. He pulled back a little bit, freeing her body. His hand then snuck around, and he lifted her a bit before pinning her again. Her legs were parted, his hands supporting her from under her skirt as he slowly pressed himself into her. His fingers curled under her panties as he prepared to pull back again, but Ivy pulled away from his kiss.

"Ren, she's coming to."

His next exhale was distinctly that of irritation, not pleasure. Gently, he let Ivy slide through his hands as he turned to take care of business. Ayako was slowly sitting up, and he knelt to deal with her. Once his glowing hand faded and she dropped back down, he arose and turned back to Ivy.

Ivy yawned, stretching. "I'm tired, it's been a long day." She then looked right at him. "Remember, I've been awake for awhile now, and I died today. It's been exhausting."

Ren tenderly approached her, putting hand to her cheek. Kissing her head, the other hand began to run up her thigh and sneak under her skirt. He started to press himself to her as he asked, "Can't it be exhausting just a bit longer?" His focus was so narrow, he completely overlooked her casual mention of her earlier death and despair.

Ivy involuntarily yawned again and shook her head. "I'm ready to go back."

Ren unhappily pulled away, catching her hand to lead her back home.

"Aw, it is smart," she realized as she walked contently with Ren. "That's really going to screw Hiro up."

"It's only temporary," he grumbled.

"I guess that makes it better," Ivy yawned again. When it released her, she brought herself against Ren's arm, resting her head against him.

**Thoughts?  
**


	23. Nap

When they returned to the Maaka household, Ren quietly led her upstairs to his room. Karin still wouldn't be up for a couple hours, which would give Ivy time to nap before the family meeting. Ren decided he had nothing better to do than stay with her.

When they reached the room, Ren quietly turned back to shut the door. Ivy let go of him, then crawled onto his bed, curling up. He turned back to look at her. She looked so innocent and sweet there in his bed. In _his_ bed. That was still such a strange thought.

There was an empty spot next to her and Ren claimed it, reclining again as he had before, laying on his back. He was surprised when Ivy moved over towards him, twisting a bit to lay her body almost on top of his as she moved in for a kiss, her eyes still closed. Ren was happy with this unexpected notion, and kissed her back, though this one was less intense that the previous one. It was also shorter, and she rolled back to her side, her body still alongside his as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Well that was a pleasant surprise," he commented.

"I like kissing," she murmured as she drifted off to sleep.

She had a hand resting on his chest and he had taken hold of it. As he watched her sleep, he started caressing the back of it tenderly with his thumb. His other arm was around her back, holding her close to him. Ren watched her for a bit as she slept peacefully. He had never done that with a girl before either. _To think_, Ren noted, _something I haven't done with a girl_.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a low, calm voice speak his name. Ren looked up. His mother had cracked the door, watching him and the girl. Carrera stood there motionless and attentive, an arm crossed over her body. She had brought the backside of one hand up to meet her chin, resting under a softened expression.

When Ren saw her, he gave no reaction. Carrera knew her son well enough that, though it was not an invitation, he would not be opposed to her stepping into his room.

Carrera entered slowly, careful not to wake the girl. She did not go far into the room, still keeping her distance as she leaned a shoulder on the frame. "So tell me, what happened?"

Ren looked back down at the girl sleeping in his arms. He gazed at her, monitoring her as he spoke. "After last night, your mother-in-law came and started telling me about siring lore. I met this girl a while ago, and she had always seemed different. When I went to see her tonight, I smelled a lot of her blood and went to see what happened. I found her barely alive. She had tried to stab herself in the heart after the loss of her grandfather. She matched the lore Grandma had told me of, and with that I couldn't just leave her, not with knowing she was one of us," Ren fibbed. He didn't want his mother to know that he had tried to save the girl even with the slightest bit of doubt that she was a mortal.

"The poor thing," replied Carrera softly, turning her eyes from her son to gaze at the girl sympathetically.

"...I didn't want to lose her," Ren finished quietly, knowing it would stay between he and his mother.

"So you honestly care for the girl?" Carrera questioned, her voice a little more serious as she looked to her son for his response.

"She's one of us," was all he gave her. He smirked a little as he gazed at Ivy, his thumb grazing the back of her hand a little faster. "You should have seen her feed, she was never really human at all."

Carrera sighed, seeing right through her son. She knew there was more to it than that, that actual feelings were involved. Call it mother's instinct. She also saw again that Ren's ideals were still a little misplaced when it came to his views on mortals, and he still had some maturing to do. This ordeal was not something that he could handle independently; he would still need guidance. With her sigh, she crossed, the room, going to sit in a chair near Ren's bed, tucked in the other corner. She leaned forward and asked wearily, "What's she like, then?"

"She can be very sweet," he began, almost a little lost in her as he continued to gaze at Ivy, "and a little feisty. She has all these funny little quirks. She takes care of those she really cares about and seems to like to take care of things herself."

His mother continued to try to rope him back into reality. "Well you realize you've now made her quite dependent, having to go hunt for food every night, and she'll be unable to clean up after herself or have any of our powers."

"Well, at least she's a proper vampire," he countered.

"Yes, but Ren, you _do_ realize the responsibility you've taken on, right? You haven't just changed her life forever, you've changed yours as well."

Ren still couldn't take his eyes of Ivy, and was quiet for a moment while he formulated his answer. "Yeah, I know," he finally responded. "But she's much better off now."

Seeing as her son was lost in his moment, Carrera arose to leave. Before she left, she announced, "We'll do the best we can to support you through this, Ren. We are a family after all. Just understand, _you_ are responsible for her." Carrera turned to leave. As she walked out she added, "And Ren, try not to have too much sex with her, this is a family household."

Ren grinned, finally looking up. "I'll try to keep her quiet," he replied mischievously.

His mother yawned and Ren looked back down at Ivy. "I'm going to bed. Watch over that girl, she's going to need a lot of help."

"I won't take my eyes off her," Ren replied softly as his mother left the room.

**Thank you so much for the reviews! How do you think it's coming along? Are you enjoying the results of the twist?**


	24. Family Meeting

The next time Ren looked up he found Anju staring at him from the doorway. Once she saw that she had his attention, she announced quietly, "It's time. Karin's awake."

It was but a moment after she said that when Ren caught the atrocious odor of his sister's breakfast. He looked back down at Ivy, not really wanting to share his time with her, even if it was only with his family. As he brought his family back into his frame of mind, he looked up to where Anju had just been, but not surprisingly, she was gone.

He felt Ivy snuggle closer to him and he turned to her again. Though he wanted to stay there with her, he knew he couldn't get away with it. If Ren didn't make an appearance, his father would be up shortly. Ren decided it was better to gently wake her up now rather than have her awaken due to one of his angry outbursts towards his father.

Ren tightened his hold on her, pulling her closer as he ran a hand up around her hips, combing the fabric of her skirt. Kissing her forehead, he squeezed the hand he still had in his grasp, then pulled back to look at her.

Ivy stirred, pinching her eyes tighter before she slowly opened them. She sleepily looked up at Ren, fixing her gaze on him. "So it wasn't a dream," she said before starting to curl up again.

"Not in the least," Ren affirmed.

Ivy tensed, taking her hand from his and turning into his chest. "Oh my God," she moaned, covering her nose and mouth. "What is that awful smell?"

"Onions, I believe," Ren replied. He still found the smell foul, but he was used to it. How Ivy now found it just as repulsive, well, he found it quite adorable.

"I thought you didn't eat human food," came Ivy's muffled retaliation. She was clearly unhappy about sensation, and also seemed to still be quite tired.

"_We_ don't. That's my other sister," Ren replied as he wrapped an arm around her to roll her back over, regretfully pulling her away from his body as he attempted to help her wake up.

Ivy was still fixed on it. "Why the hell is she cooking? It's making me a little sick."

Ren sat up. "I'll tell you about Karin later. Now that you're awake they want us downstairs." He leaned back on his arms and looked down over his should at the girl. She was still curled up, her hands covering her nose and mouth as she now lay on her back, tilted towards Ren. She looked a little vulnerable.

Ren smiled and twisted, coming back over her and running a hand along her side. "Are you trying to suggest something by not getting out of my bed?" he said, smirking.

Ivy finally pushed him aside and arose, sliding from the bed. Once she had made it a couple meters away from him, she turned back and waited, not feeling prepared to face his family on her own. He sighed at his loss as he looked at her, then too arose to accompany her downstairs.

* * *

"Papa, why do I have to be here? Am I in trouble or something?" Karin asked apprehensively.

"No you silly child. Things aren't always about you, you know," Carrera countered, annoyed again with her middle child.

Karin had no idea what was going on, or why her family was up so early. Or rather, up late for them.

Her parents had each claimed a chair, Henry at the far end as though he were sitting at the head of the table. Carrera had her head turned, looking up and sipping her blood as she waited, keeping an ear on the conversation in case anyone needed to be reprimanded. Anju waited quietly on the couch, closest to her father. She was settled on her cushion while her sister sat next to her on the edge of her seat.

Karin heard a noise and turned to look, knowing it was either her brother or her grandmother. But she was shocked when she saw it was not just one of her family members. It took Karin a minute to see Ivy, the smaller girl hidden behind her tall brother as he led her in. Karin let out a dumbfounded, "Huh?" when she saw Ivy appear.

Ren plopped down next to his sister, not paying her any mind. "Let's get this over with," he snapped. He crossed his legs, resting an ankle over one knee as he sat back. He waited with his eyes closed.

Ivy now saw before her no places to sit, so she carefully perched herself on the armrest next to Ren._Hm. Wrong_, Ren thought as he reached up, hooking his arm around Ivy and sweeping her off the armrest and into his lap. Ivy felt uncomfortable in this arrangement, being in a family setting and especially as she was the center of attention, but Ren had left his arm in her previous spot. She tried to slide off his lap into the narrow space between Ren and the armrest. Unfortunately for her, she still remained mostly on his lap with his arm around her.

She had no idea what this was about, but had never had good news when her own parents sat down to talk to her. She was quite nervous.

"I supposed I'll start by welcoming you to our home," opened Henry. "Ivy, this is our older daughter, Karin. Karin, this is Ivy. Ren has brought her to stay with us, now that he's sired her."

Karin had been looking at Ivy as she listened, but her head snapped back around at her father's last words. "He wha-?!" she yelped.

"He turned her, you foolish child. Honestly, do those ears work or are they just there for decoration?" Carrera scolded.

"Sorry, Mama. But I thought siring was only a legend?" replied Karin.

"It came as a surprise to us all, I think even Ren," answered Henry as he turned to his son. Ren gave his old man no reaction and kept his eyes closed.

Henry ignored Ren's behavior for now and turned to Ivy. "So I heard you went out and had your first meal. How was it?" Henry asked.

Ivy simply nodded and responded politely, "It was good. I enjoyed it."

"Splendid. And did Ren help you discover your affinity?" Henry asked.

Ivy nodded. "Intelligence."

"You seem a little upset about that," Carrera speculated.

Ivy shrugged. "I just don't like taking a positive trait away from someone."

"It's only temporary," Henry assured.

"I told her that, already," Ren interjected, annoyed. "I still don't see why she cares."

Karin had become a little uncomfortable when they started talking about feeding, but found herself liking Ivy a little more when she saw that she was still compassionate.

"Yes, well, you'll get used to it. But I have to ask you," Henry said as he began to lean forward, "what trace is left of you in the human world?"

"I took care of it, old man. I'm not as incompetent as you think I am," Ren snapped.

"Ren, don't talk to your father like that," his mother shot right back.

"Hmpf," Ren murmured.

Ivy just looked around wide-eyed. This was nothing like her family.

"Ivy, I do apologize for all of this, but I just need to make sure that no one is looking for you and our secret is kept. That is of the utmost importance. Do you understand? The only mortals that know are a couple of Karin's friends," Henry said.

Ivy nodded.

"Good. Now Karin, is there anything you wanted to say? I know you need to be getting to school," Henry offered.

_School?_ Ivy thought. She glanced at Ren, who still hadn't opened his eyes. She had sensed that something was off about his sister, but couldn't figure it out on her own.

"Um, no, I guess not. Just welcome to our home! Let me know if you need anything," answered Karin cheerfully. She arose and walked out, bowing her head as she thought everything over.

Ivy eyed the vacant spot now available. Quickly she moved, but Ren was ready for her. He caught her with his other arm and pulled her right up against him. Anju turned slightly to look at them, seeing how uncomfortable Ivy was. "Ren, let her go," she said darkly.

"Shut up, Anju, and mind your own business for once," Ren spat.

But Ivy didn't tolerate this. She smacked his hand down and twisted away. "Don't tell your little sister to shut up," she warned sternly, a bit of disgust in her voice.

Ren finally opened his eyes to glare at her.

"Well, well. It looks like Ren's found someone who's not afraid to talk back to him," Boogie piped up for the first time. Ivy turned, surprised by the new voice. Her eyes grew even wider when she witnessed it speak again. "If you want, you can come sit right over here next to me, sweet cheeks."

Anju squeezed Boogie tighter to silence him. "Stop being so crude," she warned.

"Anju," Ren said, trying to control his temper. He reached out and wrapped his arm around Ivy, who now sat there in shock, and pulled her against him once again. "Get that thing to shut up. Or I will." This time, Ivy stayed put and didn't protest. Ren was content with this, and again closed his eyes.

"The doll... talks," Ivy stated, bewildered.

"I sure do. Name's Boogie. Anju, pass me off. I want to get acquainted with her..."

In a flash, Ren hooked his hands under Ivy and lifted her over his lap. He set her back down after he had quickly slid under her. But Anju reacted just as quickly and stood, swiftly leaving the room and taking her friend to reprimand him out of harm's way.

Once they were gone, Ren settled back in, lifting his feet to rest on the coffee table and crossing his arms.

Carrera then began, ignoring all that had just occurred. "Now that Karin's gone, there are some things we need to get straight. Since you are new at this, I don't think it's a good idea for you to go out alone. You never know when you'll become uncontrollably hungry, especially now as you're still adjusting to yourself. Since you do not possess the same powers as us, be sure to take one of us with you so we can clean up for you if you do go out. Except Karin, she's useless."

"Carrera! How can you say that?" Henry cried. He turned to Ivy. "If you ever need an errand run during the day, Karin can do it. Just let her know ahead of time or text her. She has work and school, but she's reliable and will do her best to help you."

Ivy was still baffled. "...I don't understand. How come she's able to go out during the day?"

Henry talked slowly, trying to find the right wording. "Karin is a little different. She doesn't have any powers either, but unlike you she can go out in the day. And she doesn't suck blood, but rather produces it. She'll get nosebleeds if she comes across a person with her blood's affinity and doesn't bite them. She's also a bit... unique... as a person. She is still a vampire, though-"

"That's not true. Ivy's more of a vampire than she is," Ren interrupted.

"Ren!" Henry said sharply. "If you're not going to contribute anything worthwhile to this discussion, then you can just leave."

"Gladly," Ren replied and stood up.

Ivy watched Ren wide-eyed as he exited. And just like that, all three children had left, and Ivy was alone with their parents. She turned back to them.

"I'm sorry about all of that. Ren has a bit of an attitude, especially when it comes to the definition of what a vampire is exactly," Henry offered.

Ivy looked at them for a minute, then finally asked, "So... how does this work? Do I need to find somewhere to live or...?"

Henry stopped her right there. "Of course not! You'll be staying here with us, naturally. I mean, you are a part of clan now, and without powers and being so new to this world, we can't send you out there alone. And there aren't really any others like us out there. We stay together for safety."

"...Really? Well, where should I sleep and such?" she asked nervously, feeling as though she were asking for something.

"Hm? We assumed you would be sleeping with Ren," Carrera replied.

"...Really?" she asked nervously again, but disappointment also reflected in her voice.

Carrera sensed it. "Why? What's wrong with that?"

"Um..." Ivy began. _How do I say this to his parents? _She was quiet as she tried to think of what to say.

Suddenly, Henry understood. "Ah, she's afraid of Ren constantly pestering her for sex."

Carrera looked forward thoughtfully. "Hm, a valid concern." _What?! _Ivy thought, not understanding how they were so casual about it. "Well, we'll work that out as we go. Henry will have a talk with him about it-"

"What! Why me?" Henry protested.

"Because you're his father, idiot," Carrera replied. She turned back to Ivy. "Now, if that's all dear you can go if you like."

Ivy stood up slowly. "Thank you for all of this," she said, then turned to leave.

**Sorry for the long wait, but I have been writing a bit for you all! How was that for you? Please review!**


	25. His Own

**I'll warn you that this chapter is pretty much just sexual, but this is a Ren story, so, you know, and maybe that's why some of you are into it anyway.  
**

When Ivy turned the corner, she was surprised to see Ren waiting for her on the stairs. He reached out and took Ivy's hand, beginning to lead her upstairs. He was more than glad for that little gathering to be over, and to get his time alone with her again. Ren was used to having sex on a regular basis, but with everything that had been going on, he had started to go into a dry spell. With everything seemingly settled for the time being, and with Ivy having had a rest, he saw now as the perfect opportunity, though Ivy had no clue what was running through his mind as he again led her to his room.

She did notice that he pulled her a little faster when they reached the hall at the top of the stairs, but she figured that he was just glad to rid himself of his family. After the long strides to his room, Ren grasped his doorknob in one hand, and before she had realized it, he had wrapped Ivy up in his other arm, holding her against him. This allowed him to pull her in faster and close the door behind them. Lastly, Ren turned the skeleton key he kept in his door, then turned to Ivy, who was still trying to keep up with everything that was happening.

With the door locked, Ren gently twirled her around, then pushed her up against the door. He placed his hands on either side of her waist, then leaned in, nudging her head away as he nuzzled into her neck. He came back up to kiss her lips, his hands rising to feel her more. In her bit of confusion she began to kiss back, but knocked his hands away as they began to feel her more intimately. He brought his hands straight back to her waist, and as she pulled away went straight back to burying himself in her neck, gently pressing himself into her.

At this point Ivy had caught on to what he was up to, but was still trying to process what had just happened in the meeting. She was in no mood for this. "Ren, stop," she said as she tried to push him off. She didn't try that hard though, and Ren noticed.

Ren pressed more of himself against her, nuzzling deeper into her neck. "Ren," she said again in an annoyed, disapproving tone. She again tried to push him back, just as he kissed the soft skin of her neck and behind her ear. She tipped her head back, pressing back into him a little, and her hands seemed to slip when she went to push him. Ren knew she wasn't quite protesting anymore, but wanted to make her come to him. He was getting sick of her attitude.

He drew back and backed away. "No harm intended," he said, coming off as sincere. He turned away and walked toward his bed, then stopped when he was close. Ivy stood watching him attentively now, and he knew it, but was doing a damn good job coming off as oblivious to it.

He slipped his coat off and tossed it to his chair. In little time he had undone his shirt (rather skilled at undoing buttons) and had taken that off as well. Ivy continued to watch as his skin came into view. Skinny though he may have been, he was still shaped with the broad shoulders and muscles of a man.

As he started to undo his belt, he turned back to her. "I'm going to bed. I know you're probably not tired, so you can go where you like in the house. Just don't open up any windows or doors, and stay away from the kitchen. Karin sometimes forgets to close the blinds and it can be rather well lit... What?" he asked as she continued to stare at him.

Silently, Ivy pushed herself off the door and worked her way over to him. He had paused when she moved, smiling on the inside. She stood before him and looked up, now able to clearly see in the dark. Ivy laid her hands on his, taking them away from his belt and wrapping them back around her waist. Once they were placed, she rested her hands behind his neck and pulled him down, all of this meant to make him continue. And he knew it.

He proceeded as though he was being cautious, as though he wasn't really sure if this is what she wanted. But once he again kissed her neck, he felt her sink a bit and her hold on him tighten, accompanied by a lustful exhale. Once that permission was given, he was right back into it.

Ren pulled Ivy against him, placing a hand in the center of her back to maintain control as he slid a hand down over her skirt. Ivy wasn't being particularly aggressive at this point. Given the knowledge he had collected on women over the years, he knew that this meant she either needed him to do just a little more, or she wanted him to take control, so he did both.

Ren slowly lifted her skirt as he ran his hand along her skin. He lifted his other hand now into her hair, pulling the red strands away from her neck and ear as she tilted her head to again give him access. He began to play with the lace over her hip, only teasing her before he took his hand away to slowly sneak up under her shirt. He moved the hand to rest on her back and pull her harder against him so she could better feel him as well.

As he lessened his hold and moved his kisses down to her shoulder, he felt Ivy's hands slip from his shoulders and run down over his arms. Ren lowered himself as he moved down to adore her chest, removing his hands so he could again sneak them under her skirt. Finding the lace, he hooked his fingers beneath it and dragged her panties down her long legs to the floor, just in case he could no longer take it. She compliantly stepped out of them, and the two went on seeking pleasure from the other's body.

Ren now raised his hands so he could pull at the white fabric of her shoulderless blouse. Slowly he pulled down, his mouth following over her skin, until she was fully revealed. From there, her excitement increased rapidly.

Unexpectedly, Ivy dropped to her knees, pulling Ren's undone pants with her. Ren was a bit taken aback, but had no complaints. Ivy looked up at Ren and proceeded slowly, knowing that she now had two sharp fangs to be mindful of.

As soon as he felt the surprise really happen, Ren tipped his head back. It felt too good, and it was too exciting. He couldn't have that, not after not having anything for days. He couldn't start by leaving her unsatisfied, not if he was going to have all the sex he wanted to with her.

Ren pulled her up and swiftly removed the rest of her clothes, throwing them to the floor. He wrapped his arms around her, now lowering himself to kiss the newly exposed skin of her stomach. Ivy's' hands absentmindedly wound into his hair as she allowed him to continue.

In that moment Ivy seemed to forget all that had happened recently, and regressed back to a newer piece of information that had been a turn on for her. "_Fuck..._" she whispered with pleasure, caught up in her darkness. "_You're a vampire..._"

And with that, Ren had the same realization. "So are you," he replied, no longer wanting to wait. He snatched her on his way up, and with a quick pivot flipped her onto his bed.

Ren snuck in between her parted knees, spreading them farther apart as he lined himself up. Once he was ready, he looked up so he could see her face. He watched her, her eyes widening as she felt him. He felt her grasp tighten on his arms, and he was overly delighted.

Ren noticed that Ivy did not feel as warm as she once did, and he found it more enjoyable. This made sense, since she was no longer quite alive, at least not in the way that she had once been. And it was only natural that he would enjoy the feel of one of his own best.

Once he felt her body tense and then slowly release, he did the same. It was odd to finish without a bite, and in his own bed no less, but Ren was thoroughly satisfied and it did not occupy his mind for long.

As he rolled off her he caught her, pulling her to him to hold as he fell asleep. Though he had given her permission to wander, the truth was he did not want her to go anywhere. Besides, he could wake up again soon, and if he did having her just like this was an ideal position.

**I have started the next chapter and will try to keep up with it. I have work I need to do and submit but who knows.**


	26. Wrong

The two didn't wake up again until the evening. Ren awoke first, delighted to find Ivy there. He brought her to with kisses, anxious to get her out and witness the vampiress in her once again.

She woke up much more easily this time. Though she had just become a creature of the night, it only proved to fit her schedule better. As a human she would have gladly gotten up so close to sundown, but hardly ever got away with it. And for the first time in what felt like forever, she wasn't waking up alone.

"Hey, Ren," Ivy said casually.

"Good evening," he returned. He kissed her shoulder and then slowly ran a hand over her bare skin.

Ivy smiled and let out a small, hum-like laugh as she again closed her eyes and readjusted in the bed.

"What is it?" he asked. Ivy didn't bother to respond. "Good evening instead of good morning?"

Ivy nodded, still smiling.

"You'll get used to it," Ren said, then stated, "You're doing it again."

"Doing what?" she asked playfully, seeing as she was in a good mood.

Ren caught her chin and tenderly rolled her back towards him. Ivy opened her eyes. "You're smiling."

Again Ivy rubbed her lips together to diminish the smile. Ren continued. "One day I'm going to make you smile wide enough to show off those lovely fangs of yours."

Ivy looked at Ren for a moment, then knocked his hand away as she arose. Ren glanced at the old clock perched in his room, and then he too got up. Ivy began to dig through her bag as Ren walked past her to his window. The window was covered in a wooden sliding shutter, painted of a very dark green to accompany his dark grey walls.

"There is plenty of space in the closet and I cleared out a drawer for you," Ren mentioned. He pulled the at shutter, popping it out of the window frame that it sealed to block out the sunlight.

Ivy turned when she began to hear him speak, seeing the room glow a bit as the silver moonlight filtered in through the glass. And after all that they had been through, that one line was what made it real for Ivy. All she could say was, "Thanks."And that was the start of their day. Soon they were ready, Ren, as usual, conservatively dressing in semi-casual all black, and Ivy finding something in muted colors with long sleeves. The two didn't say anything to one another until they were on their way.

"Are you hungry?" Ren asked as he led Ivy out the front door.

"Yeah, I'm starting to get hungry," she replied as she lifted a hand to rest on her stomach. Ren glanced at her over his shoulder. She was caught up in thought as she watched her feet on the uneven path. He was captured by her soft, feminine features. Wanting to also rest his hands on her body, he stopped, waiting for her to absentmindedly catch up. In but a second he was reaching out, hooking an arm around her body and pulling her against him. With closed eyes, he kissed her cheek sweetly, Ivy allowing him to gently nudge her head to the side before he released her and the two continued on.

As they walked toward the city, Ren stated, "There should be some late-night classes getting out. The professor should be the last one to leave."

"Won't that screw up the class?" Ivy asked.

"Why do you still care?" Ren complained. She didn't say anything. Ren's practice being a "boyfriend" kicked in, and he added, "Besides, it's Friday. He shouldn't be using his brain for a few days anyway," to better put her at ease.

"Is it really?" Ivy asked.

"Really what?"

"Friday," she echoed.

"Yeah," he replied, turning back to glance at her. "Still a bit disoriented are we, love?"

Ivy looked up at him. "I just don't see why you know that. I mean, you have no obligations. Why do you bother to pay attention?"

Ren stopped completely. "Why?" he repeated. Ivy made eye contact, and after a moment Ren took Ivy's arm and guided her off the path, knowing there was a small clearing nearby that overlooked the city. Ivy was unsure of what was happening, but soon saw the many speckled lights come into view. The pair stopped and gazed out over the city.

After a moment, Ivy said, "It's lovely, but it doesn't answer my question."

"That's the human world," Ren started. "I shall never be a part of it, and now you never will be again. We're not human." He gently pulled her arm, pivoting her body as he turned to face her. Ren took Ivy's chin in one hand and forced her to look up at him. "We're hunters." Ren allowed his hand to slip to her cheek as he looked back over the city. "I know what day it is because I need to know my prey. Different times of the year, days of the week, and so on greatly influences our prey. For instance, Friday means there are more people out on the town. The weekend means you may have more difficulty finding prey as there are no classes and people will stay home." He turned back to look down at her. Ivy had cast only her eyes aside to see what Ren was looking at. As he turned back to her, they flicked back to him with the bat of her eyes. "Do you understand?" he asked.

"Yeah, but you could have simply told me back there and I would have understood just as well," Ivy replied dryly.

"I wanted to make an impression on you," Ren countered. "I need you to understand that you now hunt on a daily basis. Though I'm here to help you, I can't do everything for you."

"I understand," Ivy replied simply. "I'm a hunter."

Ren smiled at this, weaving his fingers just into her hair and guiding her closer to kiss her forehead. When he pulled back he said, "Then let's see you prove it."

When he pulled away, he kept one of her hands as he continued on. As he turned, he passed her hand behind his back, readjusting it to hold at his other side. Ivy obliged and quietly followed him back to the path.

Once they had weaved their way back, Ren pocketed his other hand, keeping his gaze forward. He was starting to grow hungry himself, and as always was looking forward to his next hot meal.

Ivy glanced up at him, and found him rather handsome as he thought in the wooded moonlight. _Dammit, Ivy_, she scolded internally, _don't start with that, and especially now when he's clearly thinking about other girls_. With that Ivy attempted to pass off her feelings as something that just happens when you sleep with someone. She did make a bit of progress though, finally saying to herself, _It's ok to like him, just not in that way_. Ivy had been denying him so much as this up until this point, and the mindset seemed to be setting in until an unwanted thought suddenly passed through her mind: _But you do seem to be very special to him_.

"Dammit," Ivy whispered to herself, _not_ finding the thought helpful at all.

Ren still heard this, and it pulled him from his focus. He turned to her. "What?"

"Hm? Oh nothing..." Ivy played off.

Ren didn't dwell on it, much more anxious to get back to his own thoughts than make any attempt at picking apart what a women said.

As he thought, he said to Ivy, "We'll do you first, since yours is a bit time sensitive and easy to find. And I still don't want you getting too hungry." Ren glanced over at her. "How are you doing?" he asked, knowing the importance of it.

"I'm ok at the moment."

He sensed that she was beginning to border a greater hunger, however, and didn't want to allow this to develop too much further. "Well let's move this along," Ren determined as he wrapped an arm tightly around her and leapt to the sky.

* * *

Ren touched one foot down before the other, landing heavily yet discretely in a shadowed area near the ancient trees and dense thicket. He had taken Ivy directly to the campus, not caring to waste anymore time. He let her down gently and securely, making sure she had her balance before she let go.

Ivy looked around at the dark campus, trying to determine where to start.

"This way," Ren said, turning away and grabbing her hand to lead her along. He brought her to a spot just off the brick walkway. They still stayed back in the shadows, watching and waiting. The spot included a low wall, it too made of bricks and topped with stone. Ren turned back to Ivy, and before she knew exactly what he was doing, he had trapped her waist and hoisted her up, setting her on the wall. He jumped up easily himself, settling in next to her. Ivy dangled her feet over, while Ren pulled a knee up closer to him to rest his arm on. His eyes were intently on the lazily lit walkway. "And now we wait," he proclaimed keenly.

Ivy watched with him in silence for close to fifteen minutes before clusters of late-night students hurried past them, anxious to start their Friday evenings. A few minutes after the crowd had passed, an older man in worn professional clothes ambled by. He had an equally worn bag in one hand and occupied himself as he tried to hastily stuff papers in it. One escaped and floated past him, silently landing in the middle of the path without his noticing.

"Oh perfect," Ivy uttered, seeing a golden opportunity.

Just as she was about to pursue him, Ren grabbed her arm and kept her back. "Not that one," he said as he caught her.

"Why not?" Ivy pestered before she shook her arm to release it from his grasp.

"He's a man," he said darkly.

"Oh yeah..." Ivy mutter, annoyed. She had forgotten the gender rule when she had started thinking about professors. She settled back on the stone. "Just wait a minute, most classes get out at about the same time.

Sure enough about a minute later a similar parade of student passed, followed by a single professor. This one was a woman, seemingly in her 30s or 40s. She carried the same amount of professional material, but kept her head up, straight ahead and focused as she clicked by on her heels.

"There. Go," Ren directed as he watched, but Ivy was already sliding from the cold stone.

Ivy appeared on the path but a moment after the lady had passed. She scooped up the paper on the ground, which the pre-occupied humans had all failed to noticed, and turned to call out after the woman. "Professor!" Ivy shouted, testing that she was indeed what she was seeking. The older woman halted, then spun around at the voice. It was easy to tell that she was trying to determine if this was one of her students that she was meant to identify as she quickly scanned Ivy. But Ivy continued without hesitation. "Is this yours? You seemed to have dropped it."

The professor sauntered back to have a look, just as Ivy had intended. Ren watched as the professor glanced at the paper, disclaimed it, and thanked Ivy. And he watched as Ivy looked after the professor as she walked away, releasing the abandoned sheet to fall back to the ground.

Ren quickly became irritated, and jumped from the wall, fast approaching Ivy. "What the hell was that?" he demanded as Ivy continued to watch the woman disappear. "I told you that it's only tempor-"

"It's not that," Ivy said, cutting him off. "I felt nothing." Ren had stopped next to her, and was now not aggressive but taken aback. In this moment, Ivy turned to look at him. "It's not intelligence." Ivy winced and covered her stomach. "I'm starting to get really hungry," she beseeched, Ren hearing a bit of pain reflecting in her voice. Ivy glanced back to watch the professor disappear before she turned to Ren. "Now what?"

**Yes, this was planned all along, so the guessing game returns. Thank you all for the reviews! I truly do appreciate them, and did take special time to work on this and finish it for you!**


	27. Sick

**Sorry this took so long! I meant to get it out sooner, but I was also graduating and moving halfway around the world, so I didn't get much of a chance to update. And even when I did find time to write I was unhappy with it, but I hope you enjoy what I have here.**

Ren was near frozen as he tried to figure out what to do. He had never been wrong before, in his opinion at least. As he thought, he began to hear the university students. They were starting to come out for the night, already socializing anywhere and everywhere the pleased. He did not want to have to deal with any of these idiot humans coming up and trying to make conversation.

"Walk with me while I think," he said, starting to work his way past the clusters. He kept and eye on Ivy, who stayed miserably by his side. "Any of them appealing to you?"

Ivy cringed a bit and shook her head.

"Then we need to figure out what else those two you've bitten have in common, and quickly," he directed.

Ivy began to run through qualities in her head. "I don't know. They seemed to have completely different personalities. I mean, you said she was smart, and that's really all we have. She seemed outgoing, he's really shy. Worry maybe? He was worried about the science fair, she was worried about getting raped-"

"No she wasn't," Ren intervened. "She's attention seeking is all."

"Well Hiro certainly isn't," Ivy continued to analyze.

Ren narrowed his eyes at the darkness ahead, recalling the incident. "Don't use his name," he spat.

"Oh Ren, not now. Please," Ivy bid, clutching her stomach. Her hunger was becoming unbearable. Ren knew this wasn't good, her only being a vampire for a little while now. The hungrier she grew, the weaker she would become, and the more endangered her next victim was as she started to lose control of herself.

"Stay by me," he ordered, taking her arm to keep her close.

"Ren," she uttered. He felt her pull on his sleeve with her other arm. Ren slowed, turning to her. He couldn't see her face, her head down with distress. She didn't have to say anything else.

He placed his hands gently on her sides, then huffed, looking around. There wasn't enough variety here, and he didn't want to keep her here any longer. Ren wrapped his arms tighter around Ivy, and she rested her head on his chest.

Ren again took to the sky, bringing her to the top of a building, safely away from everything and to better allow him to think about what to do. Ren watched the people far below on the crowded street. _I can take her down and keep an arm around her so she doesn't escape. If no one appeals to her in five minutes, she may just have to bite someone unappetizing. Hopefully that doesn't make her sicker._

Ren turned to Ivy, who was still consumed in her discomfort as she stayed pressed against Ren.

"There's a busy street below," he said, beginning to walk her through his plan. "Hopefully you find someone who appeals to you right away, otherwise you're going to have to bite anyone, which could upset your stomach, but you will at least be better off."

"What if a man appeals to me?" she moaned into him softly. Ren said nothing, not wanting to accept the fact that he may need to let that happen. Ivy cringed again. "Ren, I can't wait. Just anybody, any opportunity," she pleaded.

Ren accepted this, then looked up at the surrounding buildings. Just down the street was a hotel with many balconies. He sent his bats to scope it out as he began to lead Ivy there. One of his bats promptly reported that there was a single, visiting businesswoman staying alone on the top floor. _Perfect_, Ren thought. _Now hopefully she is Ivy's taste._

Ren kept a strong hold on Ivy as he jumped down to the balcony. With one arm he kept Ivy against him, using the other to open the sliding glass door.

The business woman, feeling very secure in her penthouse suite, was relaxing with a glass of red wine on the couch. At the sound of the sliding door, however, she quickly set it down and whipped her head around. "Who are you?" she demanded before reaching for her phone.

Ren quickly balanced Ivy, leaving her in order to stop the woman before she could call for help. He was upon her in but a second, using a glowing hand to knock her unconscious, leaving her on the couch. He looked up at Ivy. "All yours."

Ivy had been trying to maintain herself, her head bent and a hand still on her stomach. But with Ren's words, she slowly raised her head, and Ren could see that the predator in her had already started to awaken. She had an intense focus on the businesswoman, her pupils narrowing to slits, and slowly came forward, keeping her eyes on her prey as she came around to stand beside Ren.

Her hand left her stomach as she approached, and she now moved in on the helpless woman. Ivy stood before her for a momet, then set one knee on either side of her, straddling her lap. Ivy easily turned the woman's head to the side, gently pushing the hair away from her neck. The woman was not very appealing, except for the hunger for blood growing in the young vampire's stomach.

Ren watched as Ivy bit into the soft flesh. It reminded him of his own hunger. She only drank for a moment before she released the woman. Ivy drew back without hesitation, raising a hand to cover her mouth.

"That should do," Ren said. "Are you satisfied?"

Ivy stayed poised stayed frozen, and had not removed her hand from her mouth. She closed her eyes and nodded her head slightly before she dropped her hand and climbed off.

Ren wrapped his arms around her, looking around the room. Ivy sunk into him, turning her head to rest against his chest. "That woman will be out for a while," he hinted, bending to kiss her cheek. "What do you say we have some fun?"

He felt Ivy shake her head. "I feel nauseous. Do vampires ever throw up?" she asked, slightly pained.

"It's possible," Ren replied unhappily. "But try not to, it will only make you hungry again."

Since Ivy wasn't going to play along with him, he figured they might as well move on. "Come on, let's walk down," he said, catching her under his arm as he began to turn away.

* * *

Once they reached the street, Ren did not make her walk far. There was a restaurant with outdoor seating, and Ren sat Ivy down before sitting across from her. As he allowed her to rest, he thought some more. Hopefully a victim would come by soon, especially as Ren was starting to get a bit hungry himself, but still couldn't leave her alone. He was also very opposed to asking for help, especially after already declaring that he had identified her affinity, and didn't want to get knocked for responsibility again.

"I don't like this," Ivy moaned, clearly still distressed. The woman was not her taste, and had indeed made her sick. Resentfully, Ren knew that he might need to ask Anju to watch her briefly, seeing as he needed to feed and there seemed to be no end in sight.

There was a sudden crash from inside and Ren felt a pulse, quickly turning his head to look. "I'm so sorry!" cried the waitress as she hastily bent to pick up the shattered dishes. She was still inside, and had hardly made it out of the kitchen.

The manager was nearby and came over to help. "It's ok, don't worry about it. I did the same thing my first day, except right into a customer's lap. Now go to the closet by the restrooms. There's a broom and dustpan and we'll just get this cleaned up.

The girl arose and brushed her hands on her uniform. Despite the manager's kind words, the waitress looked as though she was about to cry, clearly rattled. Ren watched as the girl turned to leave, when he heard, "That one."

He turned to Ivy, who was staring intently after the girl. "Her?" he asked.

Ivy nodded. "I'm going in." The restaurant was practically empty this late at night, and the manager paid no mind as Ivy slid past him towards the bathrooms, or rather, towards the broom closet. It took Ren a minute to process this. _What the hell? Why that girl? What could her affinity possibly be?_

He stood and followed silently, still determined to supervise.

"Excuse me," Ivy said, catching the girl off guard as Ren caught up. The waitress quickly shot up, startled.

"Oh no! I'm so sorry, just ignore me," she pleaded. "I'm sorry you had to see me like this. I just... I can't do this!" The waitress broke down, starting to sob into her hands.

Ivy sensed him, and knew he was about to tell her to hold off just a bit longer. Without taking her eyes away, she said quietly, "Ren, I can't."

Ivy was quickly before her, tenderly taking the girl's face in her hands. The girl looked up at Ivy's touch, and seemed slightly mesmerized as Ivy wiped her tears away before turning her head to the side. Gently and without hesitation, Ivy moved in and bit her.

Ren huffed, annoyed. Ivy had only been drinking a few seconds when Ren heard the manager. "Did you find it, Saki?" Ren acted quickly, pulling Ivy off with one hand and erasing the girl's memory with the other, then pulled Ivy out, leaving the restaurant with the staff consumed.

Ren pulled Ivy along quickly, and she seemed satisfied now. "I feel so much better," she said blissfully.

"Oh yeah?" Ren responded, annoyed. "Well enjoy it while it lasts, because thanks to your haste we don't have much more information on your affinity."

As he dragged Ivy along, he wove through the crowd. The crowd began to thicken and it was inevitable that he bump into people now. One was a girl. And there it was again, the pulse.

Ren whipped around and he froze, his eyes locked on the girl. Ivy experienced a bit of whiplash as he stopped. She looked up to him, following his gaze.

"Well go ahead," he heard from behind him. "I'll wait." Ren was pulled out of his trance and glanced over his shoulder at Ivy.

Ren huffed at his predicament, then grasped his vampiress. "I will," he replied darkly, "but there's no way I'm leaving you alone after last time."

Before Ivy knew it, Ren had snatched her up. He did not take her far, however, and she was slightly confused as he set her down on a ledge high above the city. His idea was that she would be safe here, but she also couldn't go anywhere.

"Stay here and think about what those three have in common, I won't be long," Ren directed before he took off.

Ivy stared after him. "You have to be fucking kidding me."

* * *

Ivy looked around at her surroundings. There was no way she was waiting for Ren. She looked down at the street with predatory eyes, not as weak as she had been before. A part of her knew that she was meant to wait for Ren, that she _should_ wait for Ren, but a bigger part of her didn't care.

She stood, then walked along the edge, trying to find a way to get down. When she turned the corner, there was a fire escape starting a bit below. _They don't call it a leap of faith for nothing, _she reasoned before she jumped.

There was a bit of noise when she landed due to the nature of the thing, but still, she landed with perfect grace, already having her balance before her second foot hit the metal. From there it was only a matter of stairs and swinging around black bars until the final leap of faith, which she managed just as well. Once she hit the street, she looked around, not really knowing which way to go. She wasn't worried about Ren finding her again, he always managed to in the past. So she just started walking.

* * *

NEW MESSAGE  
TO: Reika  
And how are you  
tonight, beautiful?

NEW MESSAGE  
FROM: Reika  
Ren! I'm so happy  
to hear from you I've  
been stressing

NEW MESSAGE  
TO: Reika  
I'm near our place  
would you like to  
meet?

NEW MESSAGE  
FROM: Reika  
Yes! I'll be there  
in 10

Ren had been taking his sweet time, thinking there was no way Ivy could go anywhere where he left her. And she _just_ ate, she should be fine for now.

He knocked on the door, looking around. Reika was quick to open it, pulling him in. With a firm grasp on his coat, she had kissed him before he even knew what was happening. _Nowhere near as good as Ivy's_, Ren judged. Ren picked her up, his prey graciously giving in to her supposed boyfriend, and brought her to the bed. He quickly pinned her down, hovering over her. Reika's excitement grew. She tilted her head away and arched her back, pleading for more from him. But Ren didn't wait. He went straight to her neck, then bit down. Reika froze, paralyzed. Then Ren felt her try to draw her arms between them, but he kept her pinned. These girls just weren't doing it for him, leaving him frustrated, and all he could think of was getting back to Ivy.

Reika started to struggle, only annoying Ren. He pulled her arms up above her head, using one hand to pin her. With his now freed hand he covered her face. The girl went limp as he continued to drink away her stress. Finally he pulled back. Ren wiped his mouth as he looked over the girl, then climbed off. Having his fill, he went back to find Ivy.

But within a couple minutes he was back where he had left her, and he was dead frozen. There was no reason for her to not be there. How could she escape? Why hadn't he thought to at least leave a bat with her? With that thought, his bats sprung into action, scattering across the city. When they found her, he muttered to himself, "Dammit, I should have known."

**Working on more already! We'll see how fast I can get it out.**


	28. Affinity

**It's fine, I just wanted you to know why this got neglected. But after this I have two more ready, which I'll be getting out because I wanted to write a Christmas chapter.  
**

On the quietly lit street, Ivy sensed Ren's presence, though he didn't make a sound. He was still, watching her with pocketed hands. "I missed it," she said to him quietly. She dropped her hand from the peeling paper, but her eyes did not move away from the funeral notice outside her grandfather's house.

"You couldn't have gone anyway," he replied. "It was held during the day, and you don't exist in that world anymore." Ren continued to watch her and she still didn't move.

"Are you mad?" she asked.

"I was," he admitted, but he couldn't be angry with her just at this moment.

She finally turned back to look at him. "I knew you'd find me."

With this acknowledgement he walked up to her. She was completely still as she looked up at him. He sighed, then admitted, "I shouldn't have left you alone."

"No, you shouldn't have," she replied evenly, then she added, "it was a really dumb move on your part."

Usually this would have angered Ren, but it didn't. She wasn't all that threatening. And she seemed to be ok. He caught her chin, keeping her gaze on him. He smiled just the tiniest bit. "Still feisty?"

Ivy rested a hand on his wrist just under her chin. She twisted her head, taking her chin from his grasp, but only so she could turn her cheek back into his open palm, closing her eyes. "Still feisty," she replied.

Ren actually felt relieved with this. Though she wasn't jolly at the moment, this same circumstance would have sent her into a deep depression before. And he liked it when he could dismiss her feistiness as cute.

He slowly reached out and pulled her against him, kissing her head and giving her, well, some love. "I'll call Anju next time I need to leave," he told her, weaving his fingers into her hair.

"Call Anju anyway," Ivy said. "I like her better."

He pulled back to take her chin to look up at him again. "I'm afraid you're stuck with me, love." She sighed and cast her eyes aside, but she was still calm. Ren liked her in this state, being somewhat vulnerable and letting him close. He watched his hand as he reached out to brush a red strand behind her ear. "Do you want to go home?" he asked.

Ivy lowered her eyebrows and shook her head, looking back up at him, becoming a little more alive. "No," she proclaimed. "There's still plenty of night left, I want to be outside."

"Have it your way," he said as he turned, placing a hand on the small of her back to encourage her forward.

Once they worked their way back into the city, Ivy eyed a metal bench. "Just there," she notioned. Ren accompanied her. Once they were seated Ren again rested his arm behind Ivy. She had turned towards him, bringing a knee up onto the bench as she twisted around. Ren saw her look around anxiously, first biting her thumb as she thought, then bringing her hands together to twist the snake around her thumb.

"Have you figured out your affinity?" he asked.

"No!" she burst, still looking around. "There seems to be no pattern, I can't figure it out." Ren studied her, frustrated. It wasn't as cute this time. It was important, and he wanted to figure it out just as much as she did. She turned her head to study the other side of the street. There were fewer people on this street, which only offered a grocery store and a couple convenience stores at this hour.

"Ivy," she heard from behind her. Ivy recognized the voice, but couldn't place it. She whipped her head around, and immediately knew why she was confused.

"That's the first time you called me by my name," she remarked. Hiro stood behind them, and Ivy looked up at him a bit surprised. Ren, on the other hand, was giving him a murderous glare.

Hiro smiled and dropped his eyes smoothly for a moment before he looked up at her. "I finally feel confident enough not to hide behind that dorky nickname," he replied.

She raised her eyebrows and pouted her lip a little, as though to say she was impressed.

Hiro saw Ren, but he didn't care. He saw Ren as no threat with this new mentality. Ivy wasn't really sure how to react to this, so she asked, "How have you been?"

"I've been great," he replied, leaning a hand on the back of the bench. Ren now turned his focus to it, seeing this as vile trespassing. He was so outraged he couldn't even speak. He started to think of how he would deal with this, or how he would deal with Ivy afterwards. Hiro continued. "I went to the science fair last night."

"Oh yeah? How did that go?" Ivy asked, fully engaged in the conversation.

Hiro smiled and for a moment lifted the hand that Ren was glaring at before planting it again. "I won."

"Oh, congratulations, Hiro! I'm so happy for you," she praised, smiling.

"Thank you," he said happily, nodding his head. "So," he began, leaning in a little more, "I was wondering if you would do me the honor of allowing me to take you out for a celebratory dinner?"

Ivy had not only been engaged in the conversation, but was watching Ren out of the corner of her eye. She saw he was about to finally say something, and quickly held up a finger to his lips. "Oh Hiro, that sound like a lovely offer, but I'm sorry, I'm tied to this one."

Hiro glanced at Ren. "Are you sure? He kind of looks like a jerk," he declared. Ren's hand resting behind Ivy began to dent the metal.

Ivy full on covered Ren's mouth at this, using her whole hand. "I know, but still," she answered. As she spoke, she readjusted so she was sitting on both her knees, making sure to lean forward as she settled in. It worked, and Ren instinctively turned his eyes to her bust. It gave her the moment she needed. "Thank you, though. You've actually helped me figure out something very important."

Hiro smiled again, flirting, "That's what I do." He leaned back, beginning to step away. As a farewell he said, "Just let me know if you change your mind."

"I will," she replied. "Take care, Hiro."

He waved and disappeared with a pleasant stroll as Ivy looked after him.

Ren quickly knocked her hand away, furious. "What the hell was that? What the fuck did I tell you?" he demanded.

But she ignored this, quickly turning to look at him. "I know what it is."

Ren's anger was thrown off. "You weren't paying attention at all, were you?" she asked. She shook her head, continuing. "You said when we bite we suck out that quality. The college girl was thinking that she might look slutty, that her roommate was annoyed with her. The waitress didn't think she could do her job. Hiro has always been so unsure of himself that he could never even use my name or look me in the eye for more than a second, and now he's so confident you didn't even deter him. I'm drawn to insecurity. Self-doubt."

Ren took a moment to process this. Ivy continued. "I bet if we go back and look at that waitress we'll see she's now confident as well."

Ren just looked at her, all of this was happening just as quickly as she was talking. "And you know how else I knew you weren't paying attention?" she asked, leaning forward to put her hands on his cheeks.

"How?" he asked callously.

Ivy's first foot slid to the ground as she said, "Because I actually admitted to being with you for once," her second foot hit the ground, "and you're not gloating." He thought back and realized that she was right. She took one of his hands in both of hers and pulled, encouraging him to stand up. "Come on, let's go find that waitress." He did stand, slowly, and as he arose she saw the dent in the bench. Her eyes widened. "Did you do that?"

Ren tucked her under his arm and didn't look back. "Let's go."

* * *

The two stood across the street, watching the smiling, assertive waitress as she worked. "Looks like a correct diagnosis," Ren said, calmly watching the girl as he stood upright with his arms folded. He turned to Ivy, looking down at her as he uncrossed his arms, tucking her under one and pulling her against him. "Are you hungry?"

"I could go for one more before I call it a night," she replied.

"I have just the one," replied Ren, extracting his phone. After a moment, Ivy heard, "Hello sweet Hana, what are you up to?...I'm sorry, darling...No, it's not you, I've just been busy...Yes I really want to see you...Ok, I'll be at your place in a few minutes, bye."

Ren snapped his phone shut and put it away. "I've made us a reservation," he remarked.

Ivy laughed and shook her head. "You're horrible," she said, thoroughly enjoying his comment. And how he loved that she enjoyed it.

* * *

Ivy leaned on the wall right next to the door, waiting. Ren watched to make sure she was situated, then knocked on the door. Hana answered in tears.

"What is it?" Ren asked, doing a damn good job coming off as though he cared.

"You hung up without saying you love me!" she cried.

Ren discretely glanced at Ivy. He saw her melt a little bit against the wall, her lips parted. She looked back at him with hazy eyes. "You can't even look at me!" Hana cried. Ivy's eyes rolled back with anticipation. He knew then that this girl sounded delicious.

He looked back at Hana and entered her apartment. "Darling, how can you say that?" he asked, taking her in his arms. He made sure to rest her head against his chest, looking away from the door. "Of course I love you."

"No you don't!" she cried. "You haven't called me in weeks! You probably just want sex!" She was so beside herself that she didn't even make the connection that both his arms were around her when she heard the door close.

As she continued to sob, Ren looked up to watch Ivy approach. "Not at all, I'm here to make you feel better."

"You didn't even know I was upset until now!" Ren tenderly gathered her hair and pulled it away from her neck, then lessened his hold on her. She looked up at him, a bit upset at this move. As she started to complain, Ren watched Ivy slowly move her arms to hover around the sides of the girl, her mouth moving closer to her neck. Before Hana had realized anything, Ivy had bit down.

At this Ren released Hana, allowing Ivy to take her into her adoring grasp. She wrapped one arm around Hana's waist, the other coming around to rest on her bare chest. Hana looked up at Ren, frozen, a look of shock and pain on her face. Ren simply looked down and smirked, not bothering to pretend to care anymore.

Ivy wrapped her arms tighter around the girl as she continued, her upper hand sliding under the pink straps of Hana's nightgown.

"Ivy," Ren warned, giving her a heads up. He reached out to cover Hana's face and erase her memory. As he finished so did Ivy, pulling back. As she released, she let the girl fall through her arms to the floor.

Ivy again closed her eyes, brushing her lips with a sprawled finger before she slowly opened her eyes to Ren. "That was delicious," she breathed, extending a hand. Ren reached out to take it, holding it up as Ivy stepped over the girl. As he pulled her along, he turned to place his other hand behind her, delightfully watching her in her bliss. Ivy came to a bit more and said, "I owe you dinner," as they walked out the door.


	29. Really?

Henry and Carrera were in the living room as per usual when Ren and Ivy arrived home. "Ren, I'd like to talk to you," Henry bellowed to the next room.

Ivy looked up at Ren, and he looked down to her to see what her next move was. "I'm just going to wash up and go to bed," she disclosed. He said nothing, unhappy with his summons, and she turned away. Ren watched her leave, then went on to face his father.

"What is it?" he asked annoyed when he entered the room. He did not want to be there and didn't even bother to sit down.

"How are things going?" Henry asked.

"They're fine," Ren snapped. He turned to leave.

"Wait, I'm not done yet," Henry called. Ren unhappily turned back.

"Is she doing ok? Finding meals?" he continued.

"Yes," Ren replied.

"And are you treating her well?"

"Of course," he snapped. "How is that even a question?"

"Really, Ren? You want to go there?" Carrera asked dully.

"I'm just making sure," Henry stated. "She's here to stay now, and I just wanted to be certain. I mean, we do know of your promiscuous nature-"

"Are you kidding?" Ren interrupted, starting to get pissed off at all this. "Have you seen her? I mean, she's difficult as anything, but she's a perfect 10 who is actually pleasant to be around. And she's _a vampire_. You think I'm going to fuck that up with menial humans?"

His parents were taken aback. "Really, Ren?" Carrera asked.

"Well, yeah," he replied. "You didn't think I actually wanted to spend the rest of my life entertaining humans, did you? Now that I have her they can be exactly what they're meant to be: a meal. Besides, who is she going to find? I certainly didn't turn her to have her fall in love with a human."

"I suppose this makes sense," said Carrera, turning to her husband. "I mean, I guess we never thought about how this would go because we never thought Ren would find another vampire, let alone one that was suitable for him and he actually liked."

Anju stood outside in the shadows, listening to the conversation. "I knew it." She smiled, then looked up to see Ivy disappear into Ren's room, completely unaware of the conversation downstairs.

When Ivy next turned around, she jumped a little to see Anju there, staring at her. "Oh, sorry, Anju. You scared me," she confessed, dropping the hand that had quickly found her chest.

"I'm sorry," replied Anju quietly. Then she extended her hand, offering Ivy her phone. "Here."

"Oh thank you, where did you find this?" Ivy asked as she took it.

Anju only replied, "I changed the SIM card and put all of our numbers in it."

Ivy wasn't sure when the girl had taken her phone, but was very grateful and happy that the little girl she liked so much had taken the time to do this for her. "Thank you-"

"How do you feel about my brother now?" Anju asked.

Ivy was still thrown off by how direct the girl was. "Um..."

"You knew of his other girls and weren't allowing yourself to have feelings for him. How about now?" Anju watched Ivy intently.

Ivy shrugged, setting the phone down. "I mean, I'm stuck with him, so why get upset about it? It's not something I could force him out of if I wanted to, anyway. It's something he has to grow out of on his own."

"What if I told you he already had?"

Ivy sighed, still looking at the phone as she turned it over and over again on the bureau. "I'll believe it when I see it." Ivy looked back up, but the girl was gone. She sighed again, and continued getting ready for bed.

Though Ivy did not see Anju leave, Ren did. "What were you doing in my room?" he asked disdainfully.

"I was simply giving Ivy back her phone," replied Anju.

It was a valid excuse, but Ren knew his youngest sister was always up to something. She waited a moment, but when he didn't say anything she passed him and went into her own room.

Ren watched her, his arms crossed, and moved only when she disappeared. When he reached his room, he smiled, leaning in the doorway. He made no notion that he was there as he took a moment to watch Ivy struggle with the large shutter. She was on her tippy toes, trying to pull it closed, yet worried she would break it at the same time.

"You're awfully cute, you know," Ren finally said.

Ivy turned to him. "Stop staring and come show me the trick to this."

Ren pushed himself off the frame and went to stand behind her. Reaching over her, he took over, explaining, "You have to push it from the top to get it to slide." Ivy watched, examining what he was doing. Once it was in place, he dropped his hands to fall around the girl, leaning in to kiss her cheek.

He had a thought, and smiled, musing, "I forgot to warn you-"

"Oh God," she interrupted, already knowing what he was going to say. "You're skyclad when you sleep."

"What?" he asked, pulling back.

She shook her head. "It's a Pagan term for naked."

He smiled. "Well I'll say you do, too."

She turned around to face him. "Not anymore."

"We'll see about that," Ren replied, beginning to undress as he watched her go to her clothes. She found a camisole then stood up, pulling her shirt over her head and facing away from him. "Well that's no fun," he remarked.

Her hair fell from the shirt last as she turned over her shoulder. She only rolled her eyes as she turned back to remove her bra.

As she did, Ren, now ready, silently went to recline on his bed and watch her from there. She put on the camisole and then removed her pants, turning to the bed only to see Ren there watching her. She stopped and dropped her face into her hands. "This is my life now," she mumbled to herself.

Ren still heard her. "You're a lucky girl," he returned.

She looked up, then sighed before she went and pulled the covers over herself, and inevitably Ren as well. She turned to face away from him, already trying to sleep, or at least ignore him.

Ren rolled to face her, but didn't go for it right away. Instead he admired her, reaching out to hook a strand of her long red-hair and pull it toward him. She didn't protest. He then reached out, touching the back of his hand to gently trail down her back. Again, she allowed it. He continued this for a moment, watching her. She seemed to be falling asleep, and therefore less resistant. He moved closer to her, his hand slowing moving around to her stomach. He sprawled his hand out, leaning over to kiss her arm. He was very close to her now, but not pressing himself to her yet. Then, just as he had hoped, she rolled back a little, giving in to only his affections.

He smiled, moving up to now kiss her face as his hand wandered farther, sliding it down over her thigh. As he slid it back, he hooked his fingers under her camisole, moving around her further to kiss her neck and chest. She regretfully tilted back even more, and he took this as consent to finally move in. As she rolled to her back, he moved to hover over her, his kisses and hands now working together as he pushed up the fabric to kiss her stomach.

"Fuck..." she whispered, knowing that she would be giving in, his skin on hers feeling too good. _It was well-played, he earned it_, she reasoned, arching her back to give way as he began to remove his obstacles. But then she realized that this was different. Tonight he was sensual, considerate, and adoring, and she wondered if he knew he was doing it. But with this realization she gave in, lowering her hands to weave them into his hair, willingly deciding to be an active participant in his pursuit.

* * *

She awoke the next evening to his hands on her again, but this time they were simply admiring her. His eyes were closed as he ran his hand over her smooth stomach and kissed her shoulder. "I love it when you're, what is it again?" he asked.

"Skyclad," Ivy answered dryly.

"Skyclad," he echoed.

Ivy sighed. "Yeah, I know."

She arose and went to her clothes. Picking up her bag, she asked Ren, "Which drawer is it?"

He readjusted, propping a pillow up to lean back. "The middle one."

Ivy took her bag over, and as she pawed through it, started to put things away. She was dressed before she finished unpacking. She stood up, looking down at her project with her hands on her hips. "I guess I'll have to finish this later today." She looked up. "Or tonight, rather."

They looked at each other for a moment before Ren got up too. As he pulled clothes down to dress, he felt a hand on his arm and he turned to her. She pointed to the window. "Could you open it?"

Ren glanced at the time. "I can't yet, love. The sun is still up." She looked back to it, disappointed. This had all made Ren smug. He bent to kiss her cheek. "But look at you," he caught her chin as he straightened up, "finally settling in and asking me for things."

Ren dropped his hand and pulled his shirt on, still looking at her. "I'm glad you find it exciting?" she said, not really sure how to reply.

Once he was dressed, she assumed they would be heading downstairs and started to go. "Where are you going?" Ren asked painfully, not wanting to have to go down yet. But she had already left, so he regretfully followed.

When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he could see that they had already drawn her in.

"So how did you sleep, dear?" asked Henry.

Ivy nodded a little and sat down on the edge of the other chair. "Good."

As Ivy and his father spoke, Ren went to sit by his mother, who was quietly listening as she smoked with her long cigarette holder. As the other two engaged in conversation, Carrera glanced at her son brooding.

"Come now, Ren. We're not that terrible to be around," she said as an aside.

Then all of their attention was called to the door. There was the sound of scratching, and the door shook a little bit. The Maakas were all fully alert to this, seeing as no one was ever at their door.

"What is that?" Carrera asked fearfully.

But Ivy knew. "How did he find me here?" she asked quietly.

They looked to her, but before they could ask anything she had stood and was heading for the door.

"Ren stop her," his mother directed, but he was already dropping his feet to the floor.

Anju just saw the tail end of this as she came down the stairs, hearing the noise too. She saw her brother cross in front of her, but he didn't reach Ivy in time.

She opened the door slowly, but didn't get it open very far before Ren caught up to her, grabbing her hand and pulling the door closed, just barely sparing her from the sunlight. But she hadn't meant to open it any more than that. Ivy had already let go, placing her hands on her hips as she looked down, rhetorically asking, "How did you find me?" Then she realized, "Oh Tarot, you brought Jezebel too? I thought you would have eaten her if you ever got her out of the cage."

Ivy knelt and removed the rodent that was being carried by the scruff of its neck. Ivy stood, holding Jezebel in her hands. That was when she noticed Anju standing there watching. Ivy turned, offering, "Would you like to hold her?" Anju's eyes dropped to the small creature, and Ivy took this as a cue to approach. When she stopped, she waited, and Anju slowly extended her hand. Ivy let Jezebel crawl into it on her own, and Anju brought her closer to look at. She saw Jezebel stretch towards her, her little whiskers twitching as she tried to sniff out Anju. Anju smiled warmly and giggled softly at this.

It was at this point that Karin appeared from the kitchen, finally sensing there was something happening. "Hey what's going o- Ew a rat!" she shrieked.

Ren had just been watching all of this unhappily up until this point, but Karin pushed him to snap, "What kind of vampire is afraid of a rat?"

But then she felt something on her legs. "Huh...?" Karin asked as she looked down. "Oh a kitty!" she cried, scooping Tarot up.

"You have to be kidding me," Carrera commented.

"You're so cute!" Karin continued to dote.

"Well it looks as though there's no getting rid of them now," Henry alleged.

Carrera turned away from the children. "No, I suppose not."


	30. The Holly and the Ivy

Ivy set aside the rolling-pin and picked up the cookie cutter. As Karin frantically cooked, Ivy sat at the table, trying to cut out as many bats as she could. Karin had been cooking all day, and had asked for some help. They were having a Christmas gathering later, and Ivy had offered to help, though she didn't know why Karin had to cook so much, she was the only one in the house who ate this stuff. For the effect, Ivy supposed. She was also relieved that today she was cooking a meat dish, which was far less revolting than usual.

Over the sizzle she heard a door slam, then Henry's voice bellow, "Ren!" She waited a moment, but it was quiet, so she went back to cutting.

A moment later Henry came around in his Santa hat, glancing in the kitchen and finding what he was looking for. "Oh Ivy there you are. Oh my, don't you look splendid!"

She was already in her dark green holiday dress made of a stretch cotton, the neckline even and only low enough to show her top bat. The skirt flared out to her mid-thigh, and as always it was long-sleeved. Not only that, but she had bothered to pin a bit of her hair back for the occasion. "Thank you," she replied, allowing him to continue.

"I asked Ren to help me set up the tree. He got annoyed with me and stormed out, would you be able to go retrieve him? He couldn't have gotten too far yet and I would really like it if we were all together," Henry requested.

"Yeah, sure," she answered calmly, promptly standing up and abandoning her project. Ivy was quick to do most anything Henry or Carrera asked, still extremely grateful for their welcoming reception of her. And she liked them, too. She found them easier to get along with than the parents she had lived with for years.

"Oh, thank you, dear. Do try, but if he's too resistant don't feel like you can't come back without him," Henry offered before he disappeared.

When Ivy went to the coat closet, she saw that Ren's coat was indeed missing. She first went for her boots, zipping them up to just about where her dress ended. She then pulled her coat down, slipping one arm through each narrow bell-sleeve. She pulled the warm grey fabric around her, nicely fitting her form with each button done, long enough to hide the bit of skin that was still exposed. When she opened the door, she saw that it was snowing, and pulled the large hood over her head before she pocketed her hands and went on her way.

Looking to the ground, she saw only one set of prints in the snow. _This shouldn't be too hard._ Ivy followed the steps, but she did so quickly as the new snow had started to cover them.

Partway down the trail, they veered off. Ivy stopped, following them with her eyes. She recognized this section of the path. She sighed, knowing she would soon find him brooding, and then set off to follow his tracks. She soon saw him, looking over the city, which was now adorned with more lights and several large lit Christmas trees.

He was still, his hands pocketed. She stopped, still unnoticed. She thought she heard him snap, "Stupid family," under his breath.

She made herself known with a warm, "Hey," and waited.

He turned to her, but he didn't move. Ivy instead picked her way through the snow, going to him. She looked up at him. Henry had been right to send her. When he looked down at her, Ivy could tell that his frustration with his family did not extend to her. Finally, she opened with, "I thought you would be placing mistletoe all over the house."

"Why?" he replied. "There's no one in that house I want to see kissing, and I'll kiss you when I feel like it."

He looked down at her, following the curves her coat still displayed. Though he had a suspicion that she had been sent, he was not annoyed to see her. In the past, he went to seek comfort from his women when he was upset with his family. Ren greatly appreciated the female form, and found it a pleasant distraction from his family life. He extracted his hands, slowly reaching for Ivy.

He rested them on the slender curve of her waist, pulling her against him. They wandered over the grey fabric, simply feeling her form and keeping her close. Ivy allowed this, knowing it was probably what he needed to calm down enough to go back. And he was being gentle again—it wasn't like it was horrible.

Ren leaned down slowly to kiss her cheek. She still allowed him to continue, but he reached up, suddenly grabbing her chin and turning her head to kiss him, deciding that he now wanted her affections as well. Ivy kissed him back. It seemed innocent enough. She raised her hands to rest behind his neck. Then, suddenly, he slid his hands further down, placing them under her dress and hoisting her up.

She was already up before she could react. When he next moved, she knew what was coming and cried, "Ren, no!" But it was happening too fast. He had her raised high, her legs around him. She bent forward, wrapping her arms around his head as she curved her torso over him, bowing her head.

She had prepared just in time. When Ren pushed her against the tree, the snow from the above branches loosened and fell over them, landing on her hood and along her back. She quickly straightened up, most of the snow falling away. "Ren!" she reprimanded.

But he had made a discovery and was ignoring all else. He ran his hands just a little further back, asking, "Well what do we have here?"

Just as quickly, he had twisted, keeping her right there as he flipped her back into the snow-covered ground. Once he had her down, he leaned back, flipping up the front of her dress and coat up so he could see for himself. He grinned, bringing his hands back to her skin. Ivy rolled her eyes, completely unsurprised by all this.

Ren ran a hand over her red panties, a white ribbon woven through the lace. "These are festive," he admired. "But you're being quite a naughty girl for only having these on underneath."

This gave Ivy an idea. "I'll be a naughty girl for you here, but only if you'll be a nice boy and come back to the house with me." Though his hands didn't stray, his eyes flashed up to her. She could tell he was conflicted by his feelings over each end of the bargain. She thought he might need more persuading. "So if you agreed," she reasoned, "you would be the only one I had ever had sex in snow with. I've never done it before."

She knew Ren wanted her any way and anywhere he could have her, but even more so she knew that he liked it when he could have her in ways no one else ever had.

He looked back down, hooking one arm under a leg to keep them parted as he again felt her curves through her panties. "Fine, you have a deal."

* * *

Ivy had allowed Ren to keep his arm around her for the walk back. As they reached the front door, Ivy stomped her boots to get the extra snow off before they stepped in.

Karin heard the door and peeked her head around the corner as the two removed their coats and boots. "Oh, Ivy? Since you're here, would you mind going up to help Anju? I told her I would but I think I chose to cook too much."

Before Ivy could answer, Ren hastily went upstairs before anyone could ask a favor of him.

"Anju? Of course," Ivy answered.

"Thanks!" Karin proclaimed before she quickly disappeared back to the kitchen.

Ivy went right up to Anju's room, knocking on the door.

"Come in," called a soft voice.

Ivy pushed open the door. "Karin said you needed help? With what?"

Anju had been brushing her hair, still in her nightgown, and extended the brush to Ivy. Ivy understood and went to sit behind her on the bed, gently brushing out the tangles as Anju watched Jezebel eat some of the scraps from Karin's cooking atop her dresser.

Meanwhile downstairs, Usui had arrived, having been invited to help decorate the tree. He knocked and entered cautiously, calling out, "Hello?"

"Usui!" he heard Henry call out. "Would you come in here and help me with this tree?"

"Yeah, sure," he replied, going straight to help.

"Thank you," said Henry as Usui came to help him steady the tree. "I asked Ren to help but he's in one of his moods."

"It's no problem," he replied. After the tree seemed nearly secure, he nervously asked, "So, where's Karin?" He knew that Karin's dad was hesitant about the pair, and this made him a bit uneasy. He was still a long way from feeling comfortable and like he fit in here.

"She's in the kitchen cooking dinner for you both. I think I've got this, Kenta. Would you go bring in one of the boxes of ornaments?"

"Sure thing," he replied, though his voice did not sound as confident as his words. Not only was he in a house of vampires, but his girlfriend's house. What did they think of him? How was he supposed to act? Did her parents even really like him? With his nerves he quickly went off to find the boxes, only to realize, "Um, where are they?"

"They're just down the hall there," Henry called back.

"Right," Usui replied.

But when he turned around, he jumped. Ivy was standing right there, looking at him. "Hello," she said calmly, eyes fixed on him. "Who are you?"

Usui was very uneasy. He didn't know who this girl was. Karin hadn't talked about her. Was she extended family? Was she... another vampire? And with the way she looked at him... she may have been creepier than Karin's younger sister. "Um..." His mind was so frantic as he tried to come up with the right answer. As he thought, Tarot came by. He jumped and Ivy caught him, her eyes never leaving Kenta, never blinking.

Without an answer, she proceeded to implore, "You don't live here. What are you doing?"

"Um, I, ah..." This boy was brimming with insecurity.

Anju, finally ready, began to come down the stairs and noticed the two of them talking. She saw the difference in Ivy right away, and even without seeing it before, knew immediately what it meant. She went faster, grabbing Usui by the hand and pulling him down the hall. "Were you looking for the ornaments?" she asked.

"Ah, yeah..." Usui replied. He looked back over his shoulder at Ivy as Anju pulled him along. She stood there, continuing to pet Tarot and stare at him. "Anju, who is that?" he asked.

Anju pulled him out of sight to the ornament boxes, finally dropping his hand. "That's Ivy," she replied simply. "My brother brought her here."

Boogie expanded, "She could very well be Ren's favorite thing in the whoooole world!" He then went into a fit of laughter about it. This made Usui even more uneasy. If anyone in the family didn't like him, it was Karin's older brother.

"Your brother?" Usui repeated, surprised. "Does that mean that she's, I mean is she-?"

"Oh she's a vampire all right," answered Boogie.

"I suggest you keep your distance from her for now," Anju finished.

"Right..." he responded uncomfortably. Realizing that he had been gone for a bit now, he chose the nearest box to bring back.

He saw Ivy again as he continued to run boxes, but was in luck. Elda burst in the door, announcing, "Grandma's hooome! I brought more decorations!" Ivy turned, responding to this. Elda saw her, setting the bags down. "Oh Ivy don't you look lovely, come here." Ivy went to her and allowed the matriarch to dote on her another moment, but then Elda looked and saw the tree set up and ornaments out. "Henry!" she screeched. "You better not have started decorating the tree without me!" Elda stormed off to confront her son. Ivy looked down at the bags and began to gather them.

Usui saw this as his opportunity to slip into the kitchen to finally see Karin. He smiled when he saw her, and she noticed him. "Usui!" she cried, running to greet him. "Are you hungry?"

"Um, yeah, actually," he answered.

But before it could go any further, Elda's voice carried through the house, "All Maakas in the living room NOW!"

"Oh no!" Karin yelped. She ran back to the stove, turning the heat on low. Just as quickly she ran back, asking Usui, "Could you just watch that?"

"Of course," he answered.

She smiled at him happily, saying, "Thank you!" then fled. He sighed, going over to the stove to see what she was cooking.

Curiously, he continued around the kitchen, going to the table to look at the cookies. Unable to help himself, he reached out and took one. Upon taking his first bite, he heard, "I helped make those."

He jumped, looking up to see Ivy again. He was cornered. After what Anju had said, Ivy made him that much more uncomfortable. "Ah, they're really good," he quavered.

She came closer, luckily on the other side of the table, and set the bag she had in a chair. "Do you celebrate Christmas?" she asked.

"Um, my mom and I like to do a little something each year, nothing too fancy," he answered. This wasn't that hard. She didn't seem _too_ bad.

As he answered her question, she reached in the bag and took out a stem of holly. "Did you know that all Christmas customs are stolen from a Pagan holiday?"

"Um, no, you just taught me something new," Usui replied, trying his best to keep her engaged in this somewhat normal conversation as long as he could.

"My mother was a witch. She always sang me this one Christmas song, infused with Pagan and Christian influences, because of my name." Ivy only looked at the holly leaves twirling in her fingers as she spoke.

"Ah, what one?" Usui continued.

"The Holly and the Ivy," she responded. Quietly, she began to hum the tune to herself before singing aloud, "_The holly bears a berry, as red as any blood_..." and it was with this line that she looked back up at him. Without another word, she looked back into the bag, extracting another item. She held the mistletoe up. "Would you hang this in the door for me? I can't reach."

Usui really did not want to cross to her side of the table. "Couldn't you have Ren help you?" he suggested timidly.

"Have you met Ren?" she asked. All he could do was nod. "If you were me, would _you_ encourage Ren to come hang mistletoe for you?"

He realized her point. _It is in the door, I won't be cornered anymore_, he reasoned. Uneasily, he walked around the table. He was relieved when Ivy kept her arm at length to give him the plant. Usui went to the door, stretching up to fasten the mistletoe.

As he finished, he looked back ahead of him and jumped. She was standing right before him. He stepped back only to hit the door frame. "Did you know mistletoe and holly are poisonous?" she asked.

"N-no," he stammered, trying to seem calm, but knowing he wasn't even close to coming across as such.

"You still have your scarf on," she said. One hand still held the holly, but the other stretched out to where her eyes were locked. "Let me take that for you, you must be so warm..." Ivy said hazily. Her hand grasped the scarf with a firm hold, only pulling it away from his neck as she began to lean in.

All of the Maakas had made it to the living room, except Ren, who now descended the stairs after taking an extra moment to think about how much he did not want to go downstairs. The hall was dark, but the light in the kitchen caught his eye. And then he saw Usui and Ivy. "_No!_" he roared, now moving fast.

He grabbed Ivy, throwing her over his shoulder and rapidly taking her up to his room. Usui let out a breath, feeling that he was now out of harm's way. He also didn't expect Ren to protect him like that, and for a moment thought that maybe Ren liked him more than he thought. But that all only lasted a moment. Within seconds he saw Ren charging back down the stairs.

Ren overwhelmed Usui, pushing him onto the table, scattering everything on it, and holding him down by his neck. Karin came in, responding to the first noise thinking it could have been something gone wrong with her cooking. She saw her brother with Usui pinned down to the table. "Ren, stop! Let go! What are you doing?" she cried, running to him and trying to pull him off.

He only swatted at her with his other arm. When Kenta saw this, he said, "Stop it! Don't hurt her! It wasn't even what you think!" Though Ren knew full well what he had prevented.

"_I'm_ hurting her?" Ren bellowed, now bringing both his hands to Usui's throat. "_You're_ hurting her! How dare you ignore my request to leave her be? Who the hell do you think you are? You selfish prick."

The rest of the family had definitely heard the commotion by now. They were led by Henry. "_Ren!_" he roared, going to him. He torn his son from the visitor, taking him out of the room as Karin ran to tend to the human. Henry tossed him aside. "What the hell are you doing?" he demanded.

Ren was still aggressive. "He shouldn't even be here," he fumed.

"That's not for you to decide," Henry countered angrily. "Now this means a lot to Karin-"

"There is not a single thing I like about him," Ren interrupted. He crossed his arms, "But that's not why."

"Then tell me, Ren," Henry demanded.

"My sister is one thing, but Ivy-"

Henry was taken aback. "Ivy? Well I can't see Kenta making a move-"

"He matches her affinity," Ren interjected bitterly.

"...He's smart?" Henry asked, a bit impressed by it.

"No," Ren huffed. "It turned out to be more complicated than that, it's something else."

Ivy was still a new vampire, and Henry saw the problems that could arise. He thought this over. "Keep her upstairs," he directed.

"Gladly," Ren replied. He didn't hesitate, and was gone without another word.

He opened his door to see Ivy sitting on his bureau, looking out at the snow as the moonlight fell upon her. She was normal now, still as she twirled the holly in her hand. "I'm sorry," she said. "I did try to fight it, but I know."

"I'm not happy with any of this," he began. She turned back to look down at the holly. "But I can't blame you too much." Her eyes dashed up at this. "He shouldn't have been here in the first place," Ren scoffed. He approached her, setting both hands on the bureau on either side of her, leaning to look her in the eye. "You were following instincts that show you were meant to be here all along."

She smiled, just the tiniest bit, relieved.

He glanced down at the holly she continued to play with. Lifting one hand, he took it from her, then gently secured it in her fiery red hair. "Are you hungry?" he asked.

"I am now," she admitted.

He stood upright and offered her his hand. "Come on, I'll take you out."

"But who are we going to find? Won't everyone be at home?" she asked, accepting his hand and sliding down.

"Last minute shopping, going to church to pray, charity workers, and there's always my personal food bank – we'll find you someone," he assured.

He went to turn away and she pulled him back to her, looking up to him. "Why?" she asked, her eyes darting from one of his to the other. "You're so annoyed with _everything_ else, all the time. How are you so collected about this?"

"You're the only one I actually like," he told her. "And you're the only one who actually has a way to make it up to me that I'm interested in."

Ivy laughed at this, her fangs glinting in the moonlight. He rested a hand on her cheek. "There it is," he said.

"What?" she asked, still amused.

"I told you I was going to make you smile wide enough to show off those pretty, little fangs of yours."

And this time, Ivy couldn't hide her smile.

**Happy Holidays!**


	31. Disagreement

**Thank you for the feedback, and sorry it took so long! I just left it on such a good note I'd rather leave it there for a while. But what was sad about Usui in the previous chapter?**

"This is it," Ivy announced, arriving at Ami's door. Ren quietly followed alongside her to the front step, his hands pocketed in his winter coat. Only a single light outside Ami's door illuminated the surrounding darkness. Remnants of the last storm still lingered outside, with refrozen clumps of snow pushed aside to uncover any pavement. "I'm pretty sure I got the date right, if anything I think we're a couple of days ahead of her test. And this should help her out a lot, too." This is what Ivy had in mind when she said she owed Ren dinner.

Ren was listening quietly. "So this is another person from your life as a human?" he asked.

"Yeah, but she only knows me," Ivy reassured as she knocked on the door. "She doesn't know anyone else from my life or much else about it."

Ren glared at her discretely, but refrained from saying anything as Ami opened the door. He immediately felt it, and did have to praise Ivy for finding such a perfect meal.

Ami was tense and confused, only just pulled away from reviewing everything. "Ivy? What are you doing here? You don't have an appointment. Do you?"

"No, just stopping by to see how you're doing. Your test is soon right?" Ivy asked.

"Yeah," Ami huffed, dropping a hip and leaning a hand on the door frame. "Tomorrow. I'm totally stressing. But here, come in," she offered as she stood back.

Ivy followed her back into the room she was used to, Ren close behind. "So who do you have with you?" Ami asked over he shoulder, eyeing Ren.

"Sorry, this is Ren," Ivy answered. When they got to the room where Ami did her tattooing, the artist reached for her bourbon, taking a significant gulp before she set it back down.

"Let's see those bats," Ami said, barely swallowing before she got the words out.

Ivy turned her back to Ami, undoing the top couple buttons to her coat to pull it down over her shoulders. Ami finished the job by pulling at the lace that tried to creep up over Ivy's shoulder. Ren was working his way around the room in the background, keeping an eye on the two.

Ami ran her hands over her work. "It's good," she determined, feeling a little better about her skill. As she continued to look at it, she failed to notice Ren come up behind her. Swiftly he locked his arms around her, covering her mouth to knock her unconscious. Ren pulled her chin aside and sank his teeth into the girl, drinking as he pleased.

With this Ivy casually returned her shirt to how it was and turned back to watch, buttoning her coat and simply waiting in the yellowy light of the room. As his hand stopped glowing, he pulled back. His hands fell as he stepped away, leaving Ami to stand in a stupor.

He quickly stepped around her and began to usher Ivy out, not looking back. "Come on," he urged.

But Ivy wasn't done. "Ren, I just want to stay to see if she feels ok or if she needs anything, and say goodbye at the least."

"No, it's time we go," he insisted as he continued ushering her to the door. He was able to get her outside, but as soon as he closed the door, she was turning back to go inside, saying, "I'm just going to say goodbye real quick."

Ren held up a strong-arm, keeping her back. "You shouldn't. Now _let's go_." He tried to step forward and catch her under his arm.

"Ren!" Ivy barked, pushing back. "Stop! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't just go in quickly."

Ren sighed frustrated, dropping his hands. He looked up to the sky and then around, not wanting to look her in the eyes. "She won't remember you. I erased any memories she had of you."

"You _what?!_" Ivy screeched, absent-mindedly stepping back in shock. "Ren you didn't! Are you serious? She's the closest thing I had to a friend!"

Ren looked straight back at her. "You come to us now, come to me, for any of that. You're not human, you need to understand that. Your loyalties don't lie with them. You need to completely disappear from that life." He began to walk away, encouraging her with a sharp, "Come on."

But Ivy didn't move. He stopped and turned around to look at her. She stood, staring at the ground and shaking her head with her mouth open. All she could say was, "I can't believe you."

She then extracted her phone, placing a call.

"Now what are you doing?" demanded Ren.

"I'm calling Anju," Ivy replied. "I can't be around you."

Ren quickly charged her. Within a few strides, she had already gotten out, "Anju? Hey, your brother is being a prick. Could you-" He snatched the phone away from her.

"She doesn't need you for anything, Anju. Forget it," he spat, finishing the call.

Before he snapped the phone shut, he heard a calm, "I will be right there."

Ren tossed the phone back at Ivy fiercely. "Great, now look what you've done. She's not going to tell you anything different!" he threatened.

"Yeah, well if she tells me what you have, she'll do it in a much more civil, compassionate manner and not treat me like a child," Ivy snapped back.

Ren huffed, offended, then turned away, all done with this conversation. "Do whatever you want," he spat.

He didn't bother to stick around any longer, and set off to pursue a night of his own. All that he left was a bat to look after his angry redhead.

Ivy went to sit on Ami's front step as she waited. Hunched over with her chin in her hand, it only took a couple minutes of staring at the ground until Anju emerged from the shadows. She wore a black cloak over her clothes with holes for her arms, allowing her to hug Boogie to her. Seeing this, Ren's bat took off into the night, no longer needing to watch over the girl.

Ivy sat up when she saw Anju. "Thanks for coming," she acknowledged gratefully.

"It's no problem," Anju breathed, eyeing Ivy motionlessly.

Ivy pushed her hands to her knees to help herself stand. Once she was up, she pocketed her hands and walked slowly alongside Anju.

"Well that didn't take long," Boogie commented.

"Yes, it is still very early in the night," Anju remarked. "You must be hungry."

"Yeah," Ivy answered. "I could go for some insecure twit right now."

The two walked together in silence after that, as it was Anju's nature and Ivy had nothing she wanted to talk about, still regrettably mulling the incident with Ren over.

After a bit, the two passed a covered bus stop on the other side of the quiet street. There was a single man sitting, waiting, and Ivy couldn't help but stop to look at him.

He was professionally dressed, holding only a portfolio. He stared off as he chatted away on his cell phone. Ivy watched as he stretched out his legs, straightening his body a bit as he sank down on the bench. His eyes closed as his head fell back against the black, plastic bus-stop covering.

Anju stopped as well, noticing Ivy's interest. All she said was, "Go, I'll wait."

Ivy went at this, crossing the street. She did not see Anju disappear into the shadows again as she kept her eyes fixed on the man.

As she neared him, she heard what he was saying. "Yeah...yeah...I don't know...I feel like I just could have done better." Ivy patiently came to sit on the other end of the bench. "I just keep thinking of all the things I should have said, you know?" he sighed just before he sensed Ivy. He opened his eyes, peering out to see who was there. "Yeah, look mom someone just came to sat next to me. I'll call you back later. Love you."

With that he hung up, snapping his phone shut and pocketing it. He closed his eyes again and let out a frustrated sigh.

"Sounds as though you're fretting over something," Ivy led with.

The man politely lifted his head and opened his eyes. He didn't want to be rude, so he straightened up and replied, "Yeah. I just had a big interview, but I have a feeling I blew it."

Ivy turned, shifting her body to give him her full attention. The bench forced one of her knees to bend and she rested the leg on it. She folded an arm over the back of the bench, perching her head to listen. "Interesting."

The man let out a laugh-like breath and momentarily tilted his head to the side, smiling as he accepted her endearingly unexpected answer. It was also a bit of an uncomfortable laugh, as this fixated, pierced redhead was a bit creepy. "Yeah," he said, not knowing what else to say, yet still wanting to acknowledge her comment. He set his head back to rest against the plastic wall of the bus-stop with closed-eyes again. When he didn't hear anything, he opened them to see what she was doing. Ivy had not moved, and he saw her turned to him, watching him intently with her head still perched on her arm. He then turned his body more towards her. "What are you doing out here? You're very pretty, and seem quite young to be out this late on your own."

"I'm with you," she replied.

The man smiled with a harsh breath again, turning back away from her as he uncomfortably undid the front few buttons of his blazer. As he did, he placed both feet firmly on the ground to lean forward, trying to figure out just what was going on and more importantly how to handle it. He sat back again so as not to seem like he was attempting to ignore her. But as he did this, he felt a tickle against his stomach. When he looked he saw that the strange girl had reached out, taking the end of his tie in her hands to innocently play with.

"It's so silky," Ivy commented.

Feeling a bit uncomfortable, the man smoothed his tie against him to knock her hands away. "Yeah, yeah it is," he acknowledged.

But Ivy was relentless. She reached up, now taking the knot of his tie in her hands to pull at, loosening it from around his neck and undoing his collar button as she remarked, "Here, this should help you feel better-" But he grabbed her hands to cut her off.

When he did, he noticed that her hands retained no heat of their own in the cold night air. "My god, you're freezing," he said, now trying to cover her hands with his own, concerned.

"I am," replied Ivy, agreeing with him. "Would it be ok if I sat right next to you to stay warm while we wait?"

The man was hesitant and stopped to think about it, but he couldn't bring himself to push her away. "Yeah. Yeah that's fine," he answered as he sat back. He placed an arm along the back of the bench to give her a better haven, though he still did it a bit apprehensively. Ivy slid under his arm, sitting right against him. He took a minute, trying to figure out how he had gotten himself in this situation, when he felt her head on his shoulder. He sat, trying to settle as she too seemed to be trying to get comfortable, her head adjusting on his shoulder. But she was simply titling it back, using it to finally take her bite, immobilizing him with fright.

As she drank, she turned further into him, bringing her outside hand around to encompass him. She placed it on the other side of his neck, sprawling her fingers apart and holding him close.

It was then that Anju swooped down. She appeared in a mess of her black fabrics and waves of white hair, seeming as though she had just jumped down from the top of the structure. Once every thread and hair of hers stilled, Ivy drew back, licking her lips and pulling away.

Anju simply reached out a glowing hand, but she kept her distance as the glow itself traveled to encompass the man.

Ivy stood up and waited as she watched. The glow soon lessened and Anju brought her hand in. Before Ivy could say anything, Anju remarked, "I have yet to eat tonight as well. If you don't mind, I'm getting hungry."

"Not at all," Ivy said. With that Anju turned, and Ivy followed her into the night.

* * *

"Oh Ren, I'm so happy to see you. I've missed you," chimed his current girl, snuggling her cheek further into his chest as he walked with her under his arm.

"And I you," he replied, but rather dully. These girls were just annoying now. He had thought of himself as a lone wolf before, but as he walked with this human under his arm, he found that he felt rather lonely without his little rebel to accompany him.

It was then that he looked over to see the familiar greyscale across the street, broken up only by the long red hair pouring from her hood. Anju walked ahead, clutching her doll as her black cloak and white hair gentle fluttered out behind her. Ivy was just a step behind her, her hands pocketed in her same winter coat. She glanced across the street, and Ren could see how her coat only brought out the grey in her sullen eyes. The two saw each other, and it was clear to both that the other had caught them looking.

But Ivy was still in no mood for Ren, and without giving a reaction, turned her eyes ahead as though he were just another stranger. Ren halted at this, watching her walk away.

The girl under his arm inevitably stopped with him, sensing something was wrong. She followed Ren's gaze and saw exactly what he was staring at. "Ren, do you know that girl? Ren?" But Ren didn't answer. It was then that his sister stopped, turning around to look back at her brother, or rather, his current companion.

Ivy noticed Anju stop ahead of her, and recognized the fixation. She too, felt something faint, and turned around to see what she was looking at. She paused, lost for a second with her tempted appetite, but collected herself and knew Anju had spotted the self-doubting, envious girl first.

"It's your turn," Ivy acknowledged turning back to Anju. "Want me to make her extra tasty and vulnerable for you?"

"Yes, please," breathed Anju, her gaze still fixed. Ivy's noticed a mass of people suddenly flood the street. The cross walk was on.

_This ought to be good!_ Boogie thought to himself, forced to remain inanimate in the public eye.

Ren saw his sister's attention captured and turned down to look at the girl under his arm. "No, I just thought she might have been for a moment, but no one important," Ren lied. He began to walk again, keeping the mortal with him.

"Let's go," Ivy said, and the two joined the tail end of the pedestrians. Before Ivy began to weave her way ahead to prepare Anju's meal, she petitioned, "Don't forget to come back for me. Boogie," she said spinning around and placing a finger where his nose would be. She looked straight down at him, "don't let her forget."

Ivy went quickly ahead, twisting to get around people as she tried to catch up with Ren. When he was close enough, she cried out to him.

He ignored this, hoping the girl didn't hear her. But it was clear she did when she looked back to see Ivy. "Ren, that girl is calling to you. You do know her, don't you?" The girl stopped, forcing Ren to stop with her, gritting his teeth.

"Ren, wait!" Ivy called again. "Ren, I'm sorry." He finally turned back to look at her as she caught up.

Ivy made sure to push the girl out of the way before wrapping her arms around Ren's neck, pulling him down for a kiss. As he steadily returned her hold and tilted her back, her hood fell to expose her face. For a moment he was lost, loving the feel of her chilled lips against his. For a moment, he thought that she was being sincere, or that perhaps she had finally become jealous.

The girl covered her mouth, shaking as tears quickly came to her eyes. "Ren, are you being serious right now?"

Ivy pulled back to look up at Ren. The girl couldn't take it anymore and turned to flee. When he saw his sister pass behind her and Ivy smile devilishly at him, the moment was over. He knew what this was.

"You're not sorry at all, are you?" he sneered.

"I don't have anything to be sorry about," Ivy responded proudly. She lifted her hands to return her hood before bringing them down to pocket them.

Ren spun, thinking that maybe he could return to the girl. Just as he saw her and his sister far ahead, he heard, "Don't bother. Anju's got it. Besides, you really want to go deal with that? Even if you take her distress away, she'll still be upset with you. Anju's the only one who can take care of it now anyway. And she needs to eat."

Ren turned back to Ivy furiously, realizing he was stuck with her. Ivy tilted her head to the side as she looked at him, adding, "By the way, I bit a man not to long ago."

That was when Ren lost it. He rushed her, grabbing her and briskly taking her with him. Ivy felt some whiplash as he suddenly turned around a corner, tossing her ahead of him towards the wall. He had brought her to a back alley. It was wide, but still drastically dark in comparison to the street not too far away.

Ren pushed her against the wall, trapping her between his arms as he leaned forward. "You seem to think this is all very funny. It's not."

"Mm," Ivy voiced mindfully as she shrugged. She let her head rest back against the wall, seeming to settle in and not show any intimidation. "I think it is."

"This is not ok," Ren growled.

"I don't really care what you think," Ivy responded.

"You're acting like a spoiled brat."

"I don't really care what you think," Ivy repeated, making it a point to say it more clearly.

"There are certain things that come with being a vampire-" Ren pushed angrily.

"Ha! I think this hardly has anything to do with being a vampire and more to do with your homophobia."

Ren narrowed his eyes, accusing, "I know you did all that just to be spiteful because of that girl you knew."

"There was no harm in her knowing me!"

"You can't have any part of what you were before. This is the life you were meant to lead."

"Who the hell are you to decide what life is meant for me?" Ivy refuted angrily.

"Ivy," Ren replied more calmly. He brought his hands down to rest on her hips. "Nobody gets to choose the life they're given."

Ivy knocked his hands away and crossed her arms, staring past him. "Just, don't," she said angrily.

"So what, you're just going to stand there and pout now?" Ren entreated, upset again.

Ivy heard the tone in his voice. "If all I'm going to do is piss you off, Ren, you don't have to stay here with me. Anju's coming back for me." She still didn't look at him.

He looked at her another moment. "Fine," Ren said, exasperated. He turned to leave and went hastily. He never looked back, though Ivy finally looked at him as she watched him leave. When he disappeared from sight, she dropped her hands and sighed, feeling defeated. She looked down at the ground before she closed her eyes, thinking.


	32. A Little Help

**Sorry, I was trying to update before you had to ask!**

Only a few minutes passed before Ivy heard familiar voices. She looked over to the street from her spot in the shadows, and saw those four. The bitches. But one stood out to her. They were all drunk, but this one stumbled a few steps behind the rest. Ivy wasn't sure what exactly this girl was insecure about. Perhaps she thought that her nose was too big or pores too visible or something, or maybe she thought her friend had finally taken _her_ boyfriend. Whatever it was, Ivy didn't care. She moved fast, quietly wrapping her arms around the girl to drag back into the shadows with her. Ivy kept a hand over her enemy's mouth, pushing her to the wall where Ren just had her.

The girl was already frightened, but her eyes widened when she saw her captor. She had been squealing, though it had been muffled and done her no good. Now that she saw Ivy, she was silent in surprise. "That's right," Ivy said, uncovering her mouth. "It's me."

Ivy looked the girl up and down. "My, you look so good," she commented, driven by her growing appetite. The girl slid down the wall just the tiniest bit, barely sober enough to stand. "Wow, I might get drunk from just biting you," Ivy remarked.

The girl's eyes widened, and her mouth opened to call for help, but Ivy caught it, placing a single finger over her lips to silence her. "Uh-uh," Ivy intervened. "You wouldn't want to call anyone. Then they would find us..." Ivy brought her own lips to the girl, separated only by her finger, and nuzzled her with her nose. "...together."

Ivy smiled as the girl considered this, or perhaps simply tried to comprehend it in her current state, then pulled her off the wall. The drunk girl sank in her arms. Ivy used her hold on the girl's chin to turn her head. When Ivy bit down, the girl whimpered a bit, and it was clearly a sound of pain and displeasure. Ivy smiled into her bite.

Ivy pleased herself with a few gulps, then extracted her teeth. She let the girl fall to the ground as she straightened up, blissfully closing her eyes and bringing a hand to her mouth.

When the initial pleasure dimmed, Ivy looked down at her prey. The girl had passed out, though there were too many options to say what from exactly. Ivy narrowed her eyes, sighing as she placed her hands on her hips. "I didn't really think this through," she muttered to herself.

As Ivy tried to think about how to handle this, she heard from deeper in the alley, "Ivy?"

Ivy perked up, looking deeper into the darkness, only to see Henry emerge from it. "Mr. Maaka-" she blurted, then quickly looked down at the girl.

He stopped once he reached the two. "Ivy, what happened? Where's Ren?"

"We got into a fight. Anju is on her way," Ivy tried to explain.

"Well no worries, I'll just take care of this while we wait," Henry replied. He knelt in front of the girl, taking her face gently in his hands. For a moment they glowed, then the girl's eyes opened, but they were empty.

Henry stood and turned to Ivy. "She'll be up in a minute, but it's best we be gone by then," he said, encouraging her to walk with him.

When they reached the street Ivy began to apologize. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Maaka-"

"It's 'Marker,' actually. My family is originally from Europe," he corrected with a smile. The two walked slow as other pedestrians made their way around them.

"My family was as well," Ivy replied, not really sure what to say.

"I figured. You don't come across many natural redheads here. Makes a bit more sense why you were a candidate for siring," Henry said. He turned to look at Ivy. "But don't worry about that back there, you're a part of the family now. And you don't have to call me Mr. Marker, you know. Just call me Henry." He looked ahead of him. "If what just happened is anyone's fault it's Ren's. I don't care if Anju's coming, he should have stayed with you until she found you. Oh look, there she is now."

Anju stood in the middle of the busy sidewalk, waiting for her father and Ivy to reach her. But Ivy was replaying a few of Henry's words in her mind, _A part of the... family._ It was then that Ivy no longer felt like she was just a guest in the household.

"I have to go find some dishonest blood for Carrera," Henry said, sighing and shaking his head. "Where am I going to find that?" he seemed to call out to the sky. The pressure and anxiety were expressed clearly on his face. He gathered himself together to say his farewells. "You two stick together now. I'll see you back at the house. And Ivy, if anything like this ever happens again, or if you need anything, for any reason, don't hesitate to call."

"Yes, thank you," Ivy said as he turned to walk away, again fretting to himself.

The two girls stared after him a moment, then looked to each other. "Now what?" Ivy asked.

"I usually go to the park this time of night," answered Anju meekly.

"That's near the house, right?"

Anju looked up at Ivy. "Yes."

"Well, if it isn't too much trouble, would you mind taking me home? It's been a while since I had some alone time, and I would like to be asleep when Ren gets back."

"Follow me," Anju replied indifferently.

The two walked in silence for a while, working their way to streets with fewer lights and fewer people. Anju stared ahead while Ivy had cast her eyes to the ground. Once they were in the park, Anju said, "Ren really likes you, you know." Her gaze remained fixed on the path ahead.

"You keep saying that, but I have yet to see it," Ivy replied listlessly.

"I suppose you didn't really know Ren before he found you. Nor do you know what he's like when he's not with you."

Ivy looked up at Anju's remark.

"Trust me, you make a biiig difference," Boogie added. Anju hummed in agreement.

Ivy didn't know what to say, and still didn't see what they saw. So she said nothing, and their silence continued up until they reached the barrier.

"I'll leave you here. Enjoy your alone time," Anju seemed to whisper.

Ivy thanked her before the barrier separated them. Anju simply turned back, going on with her night.

It was peaceful as Ivy approached the front door, doing it alone for the first time. She opened it, hearing the familiar creak that she had grown accustomed to. The house seemed quiet to Ivy as she busied herself with removing her coat and boots. But Carrera was in her usual spot, smoking like a lady. She watched Ivy for a moment, then blew out a long stream of smoke before she asked, "What are you doing back? Where's Ren?"

Ivy's head snapped in her direction, forgetting that Carrera would probably be there. "Oh, um," Ivy began, removing her second boot and putting it in place, "I decided to call it a night, but Ren wanted to stay out. I was just walked home," she added, trying to diffuse any future questions.

Carrera just eyed her as she continued to smoke, but it was clear she had nothing else to say. With this, Ivy bowed her head and made her way upstairs. Carrera's eyes followed and lingered a bit as the girl disappeared, Carrera still thinking.

There was something that had been bothering Ivy, and after tonight she was pushed to do something about it. She hated being dependent on other people. She felt as though it made it easier for her to screw up somehow. And the embarrassment she felt when Henry came across her tonight... she was done.

Ivy went straight for her drawer. She felt the wood struggle and heard it scratch and creak as she pulled the old thing open. Reaching back under her clothes, she found what she was looking for. It was worn and thick. Ivy pulled the book, bringing it to look at in both hands. Her mother's Book of Shadows.

Her eyes stayed on the book as she pushed the drawer closed with her hip. With her stocking feet, she crossed the dark room, going to curl up in the chair in the corner of Ren's room.

Once settled, she opened the book, looking for just the right spell.

* * *

When Ren arrived home the house was silent, with everyone already settled in to their own rooms. He removed his things and started up to his room. He was careful when he pushed his door open, staying back so he could first analyze the room. He saw her, already asleep in bed. She had on clothes, and had made it a point to lie as close to the wall as possible so he did not have to climb over and go nearer. He sighed. So they were still fighting.

Ren was not yet tired enough to sleep, and did not want to stay in that room for the time being. He closed the door as he pulled away, heading back downstairs. Once he had trudged to the family room, he laid the length of his slender body across the couch. He tucked his arms behind his head to get comfortable, staring at the ceiling as he thought.

He had hoped that she would be awake when he got back and ready to apologize. He had already fantasized a bit about the make-up sex, but knew that he was reaching. Mostly he had hoped for, to the point that he expected, her to be in her usual spot, unclad and sleeping peacefully. For it to be clear that she had gotten over their tiff and everything was normal again. But it wasn't, and it was bothering him. He was beginning to consider just staying downstairs for the day when Elda showed up.

"What are you doing down here, Ren?" she nagged. Elda came to sit right next to him, making room for herself. Ren groaned at this, it being the last thing that he wanted. When he didn't answer, Elda asked, "Are you and that girl having a fight?"

"None of your business," he groaned, covering his face with his arms as though it would protect him from further questions.

"I knew it!" Elda exclaimed, sitting up straight and slamming her fist into the opposing open palm. His answer was apparently as good as a yes to her. "Ok Ren, I'm going to help you, because I like that girl and I want Carrera to suffer the torments of having her dear son stolen away from her."

"I don't want relationship advice from my grandmother. And not only is Ivy not like that, I'm not a mama's boy. There's nothing to steal me away from."

"That's what you think," Elda countered. "Now here's what you're going to do," she began, leaning further into him. "I don't know what's happened, but I don't need to. All you need to do is go up there, and hold her."

"That won't work. She's pissed at me. And for no reason," Ren grumbled, his arms still crossed over his eyes.

"I'm sure she has her reasons," squawked Elda. "But it doesn't matter. If she's sleeping, you just be gentle and tender. You don't need to say a word."

"Ok thanks, you can go," Ren replied.

"Now I'm not done! That's not all that's going on here, is there?"

His silence was her yes.

"She's not in love with you and you're upset. You've been doing things, but what has she done in return? That's what you're thinking, isn't it? 'What more do I have to do?' But have you really shown her _you_ yet?" Ren gave her no reaction, but wondered how his grandmother was this intuitive. "You think about it, but go up there and hold her for now."

Elda yawned and stretched, announcing, "I'm sleepy. It's off to bed with me." She came out of her stretch and patted Ren on his chest. "Goodnight, love." With that she got up, leaving him alone.

Ren laid by himself a minute longer, now having that much more to think about. He took his arms from his eyes, glaring at the ceiling for a moment before he pivoted and dropped his feet to the ground. He was ready for bed.

This time when he opened his door, he slipped in, quietly locking it behind him. As he looked over the girl, he removed his clothes, then went to her. As he slid under the sheets, he went right to Ivy, lining his body up to compliment her own. As he carefully placed an arm around her, he did his best to convince himself that he was doing this simply because he wanted to feel her body, and nothing more. The same went for the kiss he so carefully placed on her shoulder before he too drifted off to sleep.

* * *

When Ivy awoke early the next evening, it felt like any other. And in that moment she forgot the incidents of last night. She readjusted to snuggle in, and that's when it started to come back to her. Ivy opened her eyes, and wondered why Ren had such a calm hold on her.

Her stirring caused him to do the same. Without opening his eyes, Ren pulled Ivy closer to him, kissing her neck and settling again. But Ivy didn't stay.

Rolling to her back, she twisted, extending an arm to push Ren back. Relaxed, Ren caught it, bringing it to kiss. He opened his eyes. Upon seeing her, he noted, "You're still upset." He sighed and rolled back, but then surprisingly added, "I didn't do it to upset you. I'm never trying to. I'm trying to help you, but I know that could be hard to understand." He looked back to her to see her reaction.

Ivy softened, finally ready to talk about it. "You made it seem like you own me," she confessed.

"That's not it at all," Ren replied. He didn't realize that was what she was feeling, but he suddenly knew why she felt that way, why she had gone to that immediately. It was what she had always known before. "You have to understand, you're my responsibility. _Responsibility_, not property," he stressed just for her. "I have to take every precaution, because if something were to happen to you, it's my fault. If something were to happen that would expose my family's secret, any harm that came to my family would be my fault."

Ivy laid down, thinking about it this way for the first time. She tucked her hands under the pillow that her red hair laid splayed upon. Finally she said, "I understand."

It was quiet.

"Are you still upset?" Ren asked.

"No, not really," Ivy murmured.

Ren smiled. "Good," he reached for her. "That means I can do this." He pulled her onto him as he rolled back, closing his eyes. He ran his hands over the curves of her body as she propped herself up.

But she was still thinking. "So do you really care about me?" she finally asked.

Ren opened his eyes, his hands coming to rest. He glared at her for asking such a question. But then came the words, _'But have you really shown her you yet?'_ After a moment, he apprehensively declared, "Yeah."

Ivy looked into his eyes. She allowed her elbows to fall on the bed, bringing her closer and freeing her hands to play with his hair. After a moment, she finally closed her eyes, ending their gaze. But with it she leaned in, giving him a sweet kiss.

Ren closed his eyes as well. When he felt her kiss, he was again content and comfortable, allowing his hands to again wander. Continuing the kiss, he rolled with her, flipping her to her back and keeping her legs parted with his body.


End file.
